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THE 


POSTHUMOUS   WORK^K\ .^i  .i'^^s 

lUN  11  1918 


LATE  RIGHT  REVEREND 


JOHIV  HEXRY  HOB  ART,  D.D. 

BISHOP    OF    THE    PROTESTANT    EPISCOPAL    CHURCH 
IN    THE    STATE   OF   NEW-YORK. 


A  MEMOIR   OF   HIS   LIFE, 


REV.  WILLIAM  BERRIAN,  D.  D. 

RECTOR   OF    TRINITY    CHURCH,    NEAV-YORK. 


IN  THREE  VOLUMES. 

VOL.  III. 


NEW- YORK: 

PUBLISHED    BY    SWORDS,    STANFORD,    AND   CO. 

No.  152  Broadway. 

1832. 


Entered  according  to  the  Act  of  Congress,  in  the  year  1832,  by  Mary  G. 
HoBART,  in  the  Clerk's  Office  of  the  District  Court  of  the  United  States  for  the 
Southern  District  of  New-York. 


K0WARD  J.  SWORDS,    PRINTF.Jl, 

No  S  Thames-street. 


CONTENTS  OF  VOLUME  III. 


SERMON  I. 

THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER  OF  THE  GOSPEL. 

2  Corinthians  iv.  4. 

The  light  of  the  glorious  Gospel  _-_-.! 

SERMON  II. 

THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  CHRIST  TO  THE  SOUL  OF  THE 
BELIEVER. 

2  Corinthians  iv.  6. 
For  God,  who  commanded  the  light  to  shine  out  of  darkness, 
hath  shined  in  our  hearts,  to  give  the  light  of  the  know- 
ledge of  *'     glory  of  God  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ  -         -     13 

SERMON  III. 

THE  FOLLY  OF  TRUSTING  TO  THE  FUTURE. 

James  iv.  14. 

Ye  know  not  what  shall  be  on  thp  morrow  -         -         -     24 

SERMON  IV. 

THE  INSTABILITY  OF  HUMAN  REASONINGS  IN  CONTRAST 

WITH  THE  STABILITY  OF  THE  WORD  OF  GOD. 

1  Corinthians  vii.  31. 

The  fashion  of  this  world  passeth  away       -         -         -         -     33 

SERMON  V. 

THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 
Ecclesiastes  ix.  11. 
I  returned,  and  saw  under  the  sun,  that  the  race  is  not  to  tlie 
swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strong,  neither  yet  bread  to  the 
wise,  nor  yet  riches  to  men  of  understanding,  nor  yet  favour 
to  men  of  skill;  but  time  and  chance  happeneth  to  them  all     43 

SERMON  VI. 

THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEON. 
Luke  ii.  25. 
And  behold,  there  was  a  man  in  Jerusalem,  whose  name 
was  Simeon ;  and  the  same  man  was  just  and  devout,  wait- 
ing for  the  consolation  of  Israel:  and  the  Holy  Ghost  was 
upon  him    ---------gg 


IV  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  VII. 

DUTIES  INCULCATED  BY  THE  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  GOD. 
Isaiah  Ixiv.  8. 
But  now,  O  Lord,  thou  art  our  Father;  we  are  the  clay,  and 
thou  art  the  potter ;  and  we  are  all  the  work  of  thy  hand    -     67 

SERMON  VIII. 

THE  APPEALS  OF  CHRIST  TO  THE  SINNER. 
Revelation  iii.  20. 
Behold,  I  stand  at  the  door,  and  knock :  if  any  man  hear  my 
voice,  and  open  the  door,  I  will  come  in  to  him,  and  sup 
with  him,  and  he  with  mo      ------     79 

SERMON  IX. 
PARABLE  OF  THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST. 
Matthew  xxii.  3. 
And  he  sent  forth  his  servants  to  call  them  that  were  bidden 
to  the  wedding:  and  they  would  not  come        -         -         -     94 

SERMON  X. 

THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 
Acts  x.  34,  35. 
Then  Feter  opened  his  mouth,  and  said.  Of  a  truth  I  perceive 
that  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons:  but  in  every  nation, 
he  that  feareth  him  and  worketh  righteousness,  is  accented 
with  him     -         -         -         - 108 

SERMON  XI. 

THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 

Matthew  xxii.  11. 

For  many  are  called,  but  few  are  chosen     -         -         -         .  123 

SERMON  XII. 

THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY  IN  WARNING  SINNERS. 
Isaiah  Iviii.  1. 
Cry  aloud,  spare  not,  lift  up  thy  voice  like  a  trumpet,  and 
show  my  people  their  transgression,  and  the  house  of  Jacob 
their  sins     ---------  137 

SERMON  XIII. 

SELF-EXAMINATION. 

Lamentations  iii.  40. 

Let  us  search  and  try  our  ways  -        -        -        -        -  1 50 


CONTENTS.  V 

SERMON  XIV. 

THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE. 
Acts  xxiv.  25. 
Go  thy  way  for  this  time ;  when  I  have  a  convenient  season, 
I  will  call  for  thee 164- 

SERMON  XV. 

DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE. 

Matthew  xxv.  10. 

And  the  door  was  shut     -        -         -        -        -        -        -175 

SERMON  XVI. 

THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT. 

Luke  xviii.  13. 

God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner         _         _        -        .        -  ISS 

SERMON  XVII. 

THE  NATURE  AND  NECESSITY  OF  PRAYER. 
IVIatthew  vii.  7. 
Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  you;  seek,  and  ye  shall  find;  knock, 
and  it  shall  be  opened  unto  you      -----  200 

SERMON  XVIII. 

THE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE  IN  OUR  CHRISTIAN  CALLING. 

2  Peter  i.  10. 
Give  diligence  to  make  your  calling  and  election  sure  -         -  211 

SERMON  XIX. 

THE  GRACE  OF  GOD  REaUIRING  HUMAN  CO-OPERATION. 
Philippians  ii.  12,  13. 
Work  out  your  own  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling.     For 
it  is  God  which  worketh  in  you  both  to  will  and  to  do  of 
his  good  pleasure  -        -        -         -        -        -         -  223 

SERMON  XX. 

SELF-COMMUNION. 

■  Psalm  Ixxvii.  6. 

I  commune  with  mine  own  heart,  and  search  out  my  spirit   -  237 

SERMON  XXL 

CONSIDER.\TION  OF  TEMPORAL  AND  SPIRITUAL  DUTIES. 

Romans  xii.  11. 

Not  slothful  in  business ;  fervent  in  spirit ;  serving  the  Lord     247 


VI  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  XXII. 

CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM. 
Matthew  xxi.  10,  11. 
And  \Then  he  was  come  into  Jerusalem,  all  the  city  was 
moved,  saying,  Who  is  this?     And  the   muhitude  said. 
This  is  Jesus,  the  prophet  of  Nazareth  of  Galilee     -         -  259 

SERMON  XXIII. 

ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC. 
Genesis  xxii.  10. 
And  Abraham  stretched  forth  his  hand,  and  took  the  knife  to 
slay  his  son  ___--_-.  273 

SERMON  XXIV. 

THE  LAMB  OF  GOD. 

Isaiah  liii.  7. 
He  is  brought  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter     _         -         -         -  287 

SERMON  XXV. 

THE  CONTEST  AND  VICTORY  OF  EMMANUEL. 
Isaiah  Ixiii.  1 — 6. 
Who  is  this  that  cometh  from  Edom,  with  dyed  garments 
from  Bozrah  ?  this  that  is  glorious  in  his  apparel,  travelling 
in  the  greatness  of  his  strength  t  I  that  speak  in  righteous- 
ness, mighty  to  save.  Wherefore  art  ihon  rpd  in  thine 
apparel,  and  thy  garments  like  him  that  treadeth  in  the 
wine-fat?  I  have  trodden  the  wine-press  alone;  aiid  of 
the  people  there  was  none  with  me :  for  I  will  tread  them 
in  mine  anger,  and  trample  them  in  my  fury,  and  their 
blood  shall  be  sprinkled  upon  my  garments,  and  I  will  stain 
all  my  raiment.  For  the  day  of  vengeance  is  in  my  heart, 
and  the  year  of  ray  redeemed  is  come.  And  I  looked,  and 
tliere  was  none  to  help ;  and  I  wondered  that  there  was 
none  to  uphold:  therefore  mine  own  arm  brought  salvation 
unto  me ;  and  my  fury,'  It  upheld  me.  And  I  will  tread 
down  the  people  in  mine  anger,  and  make  them  drunk  in 
my  fury,  and  I  will  bring  down  their  strength  to  the  earth    298 

SERMON  XXVI. 

THE  GRAVE  OF  JESUS— THE  SCENE  OF  THE  RESURRECTION. 
Matthew  xxviii.  1. 

In  the  end  of  the  sabbath,  as  it  began  to  dawn  toward  the  first 
day  of  the  week,  came  Mary  Magdalene,  and  the  other 
Mary  to  see  the  sej^ulcTire      -        ^        -        -        .-        -  311 


CONTENTS.  Vil 

SERMON  XXVII. 
THE  DISPLAY  OF  THE  DIVINE  GLORY  IN  OUR  REDEMPTION. 

Isaiah  xliv.  23. 
Sing,  O  ye  heavens;  for  the  Lord  hath  done  it:  shout,  ye 
lower  parts  of  the  earth:    break  forth  into   singing,    ye 
mountains,  O  forest,  and  every  tree  therein :  for  the  Lord 
hath  redeemed  Jacob,  and  glorified  himself  in  Israel  -  321 

SERMON  XXVIIL 

THE  REASONS  OF  JOY  IN  CONTEMPLATING  THE  DAY  OF 
THE  LORD. 

Psalm  cxviii.  24. 

This  is  the  day  which  the  Lord  hath  made;  we  will  rejoice 

and  be  glad  in  it  -         -         -         -    '     -         -         -  33-1 

SERMON  XXIX. 

THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH. 
John  xx.  29. 
Jesus  saith  unto  him,  Thomas,  because  thou  hast  seen  me, 
thou  hast  believed :   blessed  are  they  that  have  not  seen, 
and  yet  have  believed  -         -         -         ^         -         -        -  34G 

SERMON  XXX. 

THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS    OF  JESUS,   DURING  THE  PERIOD 

BETWEEN  HIS  RESURRECTION  AND  ASCENSION. 

Luke  xxiv.  36. 

Jesus  himself  stood  in  the  midst  of  them      ~         -.         .         .  3Qi 

SERMON  XXXL 

THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  BEING  PARTAKERS  OF  THE  HOLY 
GHOST. 

Hebrews  vi.  4. 
Made  partakers  of  the  Holy  Ghost     -         -         -         -         -  374 

SERMON  XXXII. 

THE  DIFFERENT  WAYS  IN  WHICH  WE  MAY  QUENCH  THE 
SPIRIT  OF  GOD. 

Ephesians  iv.  30. 
Grieve  not  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God     --.-..  ggg 

SERMON  XXXin. 

THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT 
Romans  viii.  16,  17. 
The  Spirit  itself  beareth  witness  with  our  spirit,  that  we  are 
tlie  children  of  God  :  and  if  children,  then  h>iirs  :  heirs  of 
God,  and  joint-heivs  with  Christ     -----  400 


Vm  CONTENTS. 

SERMON  XXXIV. 

THE  CHRISTIAN'S  VIEW  DIRECTED  TO  UNSEEN  THINGS. 

2  Corinthians  iv.  18, 

While  we  look  not  at  the  things  which  are  seen  -         -         -  413 

SERMON  XXXV. 

THE  NATURE  AND  IMPORTANCE  OF  SELF-DEVOTION  TO 
GOD. 

Romans  xii.  1. 
I  beseech  you  therefore,  brethren,  by  the  mercies  of  God, 
^  that  ye  present  your  bodies  a  living  sacrifice,  holy,  accept- 
able unto  God,  which  is  your  reasonable  service        -         -  425 

SERMON  XXXVl. 

THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST. 
Proverbs  iv.  18. 
The  path  of  the  just  is  as  the  shining  light,  that  shineth  more 
and  more  unto  the  perfect  day        -----  438 

SERMON  XXXVII. 

THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS. 
Matthew  xxv.  14. 
The  kingdom  of  heaven  is   as  a  man  travelling  into  a  far 
country,  who  called  his  own  servants,  and  delivered  unto 
them  his  goods     -         -         --         -         -         --  449 

SERMON  XXXVIII. 
THE  TEN  LEPERS. 
Luke  xvii.  17,  IS. 
Were  there  not  ten  cleansed?  but  where  are  the  nine  ?    There 
are  not  returned  to  give  glory  to  God,  save  this  stranger    -  464 

SERMON  XXXIX. 

THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS. 
Luke  xvi.  19,  20,  21. 
There  was  a  certain  rich  man,  who  was  clothed  in  purple  and 
fine  linen,  and  fared  sumptuously  every  day :  and  there 
was  a  certain  beggar  named  Lazarus,  who  was  laid  at  his 
gate,  full  of  sores,  and  desiring  to  be  fed  with  the  crumbs 
which  fell  from  the  rich  man's  table :  •  moreover,  the  dogs 
came  and  licked  his  sores      ------  47(> 

SERMON  XL. 

THE  SOURCES  OF  HUMAN  TROUBLE,  AND  ITS  ANTIDOTE. 
John  xiv.  1. 
Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled:  ye  believe  in  God,  believe 
also  in  me  -         -         -         -         -         -         -         -         -  490 


PAROCHIAL.    ^E:RM0XS. 


SERMON  I. 


THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER  OF  THE  GOSPEL 


2  Cor.,  iv.  4. 
The  light  of  the  glorious  Gospels 

^'  The  natural  man  receiveth  not  the  things  of 
the  Spirit  of  God;  neither  indeed  can  he,  because 
they  are  spiritually  discerned,"  is  a  declaration  of 
holy  writ,  which  finds  its  attestation  in  the  innu- 
merable prejudices  and  passions  which  cloud  the 
researches  of  the  understanding,  and  oppose  the 
most  formidable  obstacles  to  the  reception  of  divine 
truth.  It  is  a  declaration  further  and  most  conclu- 
sively established  by  the  fact,  that  the  human  in- 
tellect, in  its  highest  state  of  natural  perfection, 
strengthened  and  sharpened  by  the  discipline  of 
intense  and  profound  investigation,  was  unable  to 
draw  aside  the  vail  that  concealed  the  spiritual  and 
eternal  world.  Reason,  by  her  most  vigorous 
efforts,  could  never  settle  on  a  certain  basis  the 
principles  and  rules  of  virtue ;  nor  could  she,  by 
all  her  soothings,  calm  the  solicitude  with  which 
man  contemplated  that  futurity,  into  the  dark  abyss 
of  which  he  was  hastening.  It  is,  therefore,  an 
essential  requisite  in  a  system  designed  for  the 
salvation  of  man,  that  it  should  reveal  and  establish 

Vol.  III.  1 


2  THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER 

those  truths  necessary  to  his  duty,  and  his  happi- 
ness here  and  hereafter,  which  human  reason  could 
not  discover. 

The  "  light  of  the  glorious  Gospel"  possesses 
this  illuminating  power. 
It  illuminates, — 

By  the  splendour  and  fulness  of  its  revelations, 
By  the  simplicity  and  clearness  of  its  precepts, 
By  the  brightness  of  its  example, 
By  the  influences  of  its  divine  graces. 

The  Gospel  illuminates, — 

By  the  splendour  and  fulness  of  its  revelations. 

It  sheds  the  brightest  lustre  on  every  subject 
connected  with  the  spiritual  welfare  and  happiness 
of  man ;  it  leaves  nothing  to  conjecture,  to  un- 
certain deductions,  to  dubious  hope ;  and  brings 
down  divine  truth  from  her  celestial  abode,  in  that 
simple  and  resplendent  form  which  is  calculated 
to  excite  for  her  a  cordial  reception.  That  spiritual 
and  divine  knowledge  which  reason  ardently  but 
ineffectually  sought,  the  Gospel  has  revealed  to 
the  humblest  understanding.  Before  its  glorious 
light  appeared,  various  and  contending  deities 
divided  among  themselves  the  dominion  of  the 
universe,  and  received  the  acknowledgment  and 
homage  not  only  of  the  illiterate  multitude,  but  of 
the  learned  and  the  mighty.  But  the  Gospel  places 
at  the  head  of  the  creation,  which  he  called  into 
existence,  and  on  the  throne  of  supreme  dominion, 
one  eternal  and  infinite  God.  The  sensual  imagina- 
tion of  man  clothed  the  deities  to  whom  he  rendered 
homage  with  corporeal  natures,  with  the  wants  and 
imperfections,  the  licentious  desires  and  criminal 
passions  of  the  human  heart.     But  the  Gospel, 


OF  THE  GOSPEL.  8 

discarding  these  absurd  and  corrupting  notions  of 
Deity,  reveals  God  as  an  infinite  and  eternal  intel- 
ligence, whose  attributes  place  him  at  an  infinite 
distance  from  imperfection  and  sin,  and  constitute 
him  the  source  of  purity  and  goodness  as  well  as  of 
power.  The  corrupt  nations  celebrated  the  worship 
of  their  divinities  in  rites  the  most  licentious,  and 
sought  to  propitiate  their  displeasure  by  sacrifices 
the  most  inhuman.  But  the  Gospel  of  Christ  directs 
the  worshippers  of  the  Almighty  Father  to  ofier  to 
him  the  acceptable  homage  of  an  enlightened  and 
grateful  heart,  and  to  worship  him  who  is  a  spirit, 
in  spirit  and  in  truth.  Ineflfectual  were  the  eflforts 
of  the  human  intellect  to  ascertain  the  mode  by 
which  the  holy  and  just  Sovereign  of  the  universe 
could  become  reconciled  to  man,  the  wilful  trans- 
gressor of  his  laws ;  painful  was  the  suspense, 
whether  all  the  costly  splendour  of  heathen  wor- 
ship, whether  the  hecatombs  that  dyed  the  altars 
with  human  blood,  could  propitiate  the  wrath  of 
an  indignant  heaven.  But  the  Gospel  of  Christ 
exhibits  the  divine  perfections  meeting  in  holy 
concord  at  the  cross  of  Christ,  holiness  vindicated, 
justice  satisfied,  and  mercy  triumphing  in  the  all- 
sufficient  atonement  which  a  divine  victim  there 
made.  The  feeble  lights  of  reason  could  not  un- 
fold the  destinies  of  futurity,  nor  quiet  in  the  soul 
the  dreadful  apprehension,  that  the  grave  might 
extinguish  the  powers  and  sensible  ties  of  that 
spirit  which  panted  for  immortality.  But  "  the  light 
of  the  glorious  Gospel"  dispels  every  doubt,  and 
confirms  every  feeble  hope.  The  dark  recesses  of 
the  tomb  are  opened  to  the  eye  of  Christian  faith — 
eternal  day  dawns  upon  it — it  is  the  path  by  which 
the  soul  passes  to  the  region  of  immortal  joys. 


4  THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER 

Blessed  Sun  of  Righteousness,  how  glorious  the 
lustre  which  thy  sacred  beams  cast  upon  truths 
that  it  was  impossible  for  man  to  contemplate 
without  the  deepest  emotion  and  anxiety!  Blessed 
light  of  the  Gospel,  sent  in  mercy  from  the  eternal 
Father  of  lights;  we  behold  in  thy  revelations, 
(divine  truth  shining  forth  resplendent  and  glori- 
ous,)— the  infinite  and  eternal  Jehovah,  arrayed  in 
attributes  the  most  illustrious  and  attractive,  com- 
manding, from  the  throne  of  righteous  dominion, 
our  enlightened  homage  and  obedience  ;  we  behold 
a  divine  Saviour  making  a  full  propitiation  for 
man's  guilt,  restoring  the  offender  to  the  favour  of 
his  God,  and  preparing  for  the  heir  of  sin  and 
death  the  bliss  of  an  immortal  existence. 

But  further — ^the  Gospel  illuminates  by  the  sim- 
plicity and  clearness  of  its  precepts. 

These  convey  the  most  convincing  and  affecting 
instruction  through  the  whole  circle  of  religious, 
moral,  and  social  duty ;  confirming  what  was  before 
doubtful ;  enlightening  what  was  before  obscure ; 
carrying  to  higher  perfection  virtues  which  were 
before  acknowledged  ;  and  revealing  and  establish- 
ing duties  most  essential  and  important,  of  which 
reason  was  before  ignorant,  or  which,  in  arrogance 
and  pride,  she  had  rejected.  The  pure  and  heavenly 
rules  of  morality  are  delivered  in  language  concise 
yet  perspicuous,  sublime  yet  level  to  the  meanest 
capacity. 

The  ancient  schools  of  philosophers  entertained 
contradictory  ideas  as  to  the  foundation  of  morality, 
and  the  ends  and  the  rewards  of  duty ;  and  while 
they  were  engaged  in  refined  disquisitions  concern- 
ing the  truth  and  importance  of  their  respective 
theories,  the  claims  and  the  excellence  of  virtue 


OF  THE  GOSPEL.  & 

were  wholly  concealed  from  the  corrupt  multitude. 
But  the  Gospel,  referring  the  obligation  of  virtue 
to  the  will  of  the  infinite  and  all-wise  Lawgiver, 
and  constituting,  as  the  end  and  the  reward  of  duty, 
our  own  spiritual  happiness,  and  the  attainment  of 
the  everlasting  favour  of  our  Maker  and  Judge, 
has  thus  erected,  on  a  basis  stable  as  the  eternal 
throne,  the  foundation  of  virtue;  and  in  the  dis- 
charge of  duty,  engaged,  by  motives  powerful  as 
the  endless  and  infinite  bliss  of  heaven,  all  the 
affections  of  the  soul.     While  heathen  philosophy 
exhibited,  in  the  most  glowing  and  attractive  colours, 
passions  which,  while  they  flattered  the  pride  and 
roused  the  ambition  of  corrupt  nature,  were  de- 
structive of  the  real  perfection  and  peace  of  the 
soul,  and  carried  desolation  and  misery  through 
the  world,  she  rejected  with  scorn  from  her  impe- 
rious code,  those   meek   and  gentle   dispositions 
which,  making  the  individual  happy,  contributed 
most  powerfully  to  the  happiness  of  others.   These 
benign  and  amiable  virtues  the  Gospel  enjoins  as 
essential  qualifications  for  future  blessedness,  while 
she  rejects  those  haughty  and  sanguinary  passions, 
which  so  often  visit  the  earth  with  misery,  and 
assimilate  men  to  the  fiends  of  darkness.     In  fine, 
the  code  of  morality  which  the   Gospel   enjoins, 
sheds  luminous  and  satisfactory  light  on  every  part 
of  duty,  exalts  and  establishes  the  obligation  and 
the   rewards  of  virtue,   and  exhibits   her   in  the 
simple  and  engaging  lustre  of  that  heavenly  wisdom 
from  which  she  emanates. 

In  one  comprehensive  precept  is  summed  up,  by 
the  divine  Author  of  the  Gospel,  the  whole  of  our 
duty  to  God — "  Thou  shall  love  the  Lord  thy  God 
with  all  thy  heart,  and  with  all  thy  soul,  and  with 


D  THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER 

all  thy  mind" — thus  engaging  in  love  to  the  first 
and  best  of  Beings,  all  the  powers  of  the  under- 
standing, all  the  energies  of  the  will,  and  all  the 
affections  of  the  heart ;  directing  the  understanding 
to  exercise  on  him  who  is  the  fountain  of  truth,  her 
most  exalted  contemplations;  exciting  the  will  ever 
to  choose,  as  the  supreme  good,  the  infinite  source 
of  perfection  ;  and  awakening  all  the  aflfections  to 
seek,  in  the  fruition  of  the  Author  of  all  purity  and 
bliss,  full  and  unalloyed  felicity. 

The  important  circle  of  relative  and  social  duties 
the  Gospel  also  regulates  by  a  single  precept, 
equally  comprehensive  and  impressive — "  Thou 
shalt  love  thy  neighbour  as  thyself."  Are  we 
eagerly  attentive  to  our  own  interest  and  advant- 
age'? alive  to  the  claims  of  our  own  reputation  and 
character  1  and  resolute  in  vindicating  ourselves 
from  the  attacks  of  calumny  and  malice "?  When 
prosperity  pours  into  our  lap  her  treasures,  are 
we  elated  with  joy"!  and  when  overwhelmed  with 
calamity,  do  we  cast  around  the  look  of  supplication 
for  the  sympathizing  heart  to  share  our  woes,  for 
the  benevolent  hand  to  succour  us  ?  This  is  the 
measure  of  our  duty  to  our  fellow-men  established 
by  the  Gospel.  Their  interest  we  are  to  consider 
as  our  own  ;  their  reputation  and  character  we  are 
to  defend  and  vindicate  with  the  same  bold  and 
honest  zeal  with  which  we  would  repel  attacks  on 
our  own  ;  with  the  same  emotions  are  we  to  hail 
the  prosperiJy  which  brightens  their  path,  as  if  its 
beams  cheered  our  own ;  and  the  adversity  which 
assails  them,  should  awaken  in  us  kindred  emotions 
of  grief  and  solicitude.  Sacred  spirit  of  Christian 
morals!  by  teaching  us  to  do  unto  others  as  we 
would  they  should  do  unto  us,  thou  dost  make  our 


OF  THE  GOSPEL.  7 

©wn  feelings,  wants,  and  interests,  the  measures  of 
the  kindness  and  the  good  offices  we  are  to  render 
to  our  fellow-men.  Sublime  spirit  of  the  Gospel  of 
Christ!  thou  dost  excite  in  the  soul  those  tender 
and  amiable  dispositions,  which,  if  their  swo}^  were 
universal,  would  render  the  society  of  men  on 
earth  an  image  of  the  hallowed  and  peaceful  fel- 
lowship of  the  blest  in  heaven. 

Review  the  precepts  of  the  Gospel  with  respect 
to  the  important  branch  of  duties  which  we  owe 
to  ourselves.  The  virtues  of  humility  and  of 
meekness,  of  temperance  and  of  chastity,  are  ex- 
plained and  urged  in  terms  the  most  clear  and 
forcible,  and  are  all  summed  up  with  the  most 
impressive  and  affecting  energy,  in  the  one  sublime 
and  luminous  precept:  "  Blessed  are  the  pure  in 
heart,  for  they  shall  see  God."  Exalted  precept ! 
which,  not  eatisfied  wiih  cuiieuiing  the  exterior, 
with  adorning  the  outside  of  our  character,  dost 
explore  with  divine  light  the  inmost  recesses  of  the 
heart ;  and  dost  insist  on  that  universal  and  sacred 
purity  which  will  qualify  us  for  the  fruition  and 
enjoyment  of  God.  In  the  code  of  the  Gospel 
only  thy  lustre  shines  The  gods  of  unenlightened 
reason  were  beings  sensual  and  impure.  Impure 
and  sensual  were  their  votaries;  for  the  heathen 
laws  of  morals  were  destitute  of  that  enlightening 
power,  which,  searching  every  faculty  of  the  sou), 
expels  the  darkness  of  impurity,  and  establishes 
the  reign  of  holiness  and  peace. 

You  thus  perceive,  that  the  Gospel  of  Christ 
illuminates  by  the  splendour  and  fulness  of  its 
revelations,  and  the  simplicity  and  clearness  of  its 
precepts.  Its  illuminating  power  is  still  further  in- 
creased by  the  splendid  example  which  it  exhibits. 


b  THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER 

It  is  in  example  that  principles  display  their 
force  and  power ;  it  is  example  which  so  strongly 
illustrates  duty,  which  softens  its  rigour,  which 
removes  from  it  the  difficulties  that  intimidate, 
and  which  sheds  on  it  a  lustre  that  attracts,  and 
animates,  and  excites  to  ardent  persevering  virtue. 
The  rules  of  morals  which  heathen  philosophers 
delivered,  were  clothed  in  all  the  charms  of  elegant 
diction,  and  enforced  by  all  the  graces  of  majestic 
and  persuasive  elocution  ;  but  their  influence  was 
yet  partial  and  feeble,  because,  besides  other  defects 
-and  imperfections,  they  were  destitute  of  the  en- 
lightening, fascinating,  and  impressive  power  of 
example.  Principles  which  did  not  exert  their 
commanding  sway  over  those  who  professed  them; 
rules  of  morals,  which,  while  they  were  designed  to 
impress  the  excellence  and  enforce  the  practice  of 
virtue,  still  left  the  teachers  who  delivered  them 
under  the  sway  of  their  passions,  and  their  vices 
were  deemed  fallacious  and  visionary;  intended 
merely  to  gratify  the  vain  curiosity  of  the  aspiring 
understanding,  and  to  amuse  and  interest  the  im- 
aginations of  men. 

What  exalted  lustre  then  is  shed  on  the  sacred 
precepts  of  the  Gospel !  what  decided  superiority 
over  every  other  system,  does  our  holy  religion 
possess  in  the  perfect  example  of  its  divine  Author! 
Not  only  did  Jesus  Christ  unfold  the  most  splendid 
view  of  the  divine  nature  and  attributes,  and  exhibit^ 
in  the  most  perspicuous  and  animating  light,  the 
extensive  circle  of  religious,  moral,  and  social 
duties — he  forcibly  illustrated  his  precepts,  and 
impressed  them  on  the  hearts  and  affections  of 
men,  by  that  perfect  and  spotless  example  in 
which  every  virtue  was  displayed  in  its  hig^hest 


OF  THE  GOSPEL.  9 

purity,  and  every  duty  exhibited  in   its  brightest 
lustre. 

This  example  was  indeed  perfect,  for  it  was  the 
example  of  him  in  whom  dwelt  the  fulness  of  the 
Godhead.  Amidst  the  brilliant  lustre  with  which 
human  example  glows,  we  have  to  lament  some 
blemishes  that  alloy  its  brightness.  But  the  ex- 
ample of  Christ  was  animated  by  the  attributes  of 
his  divine  nature.  Imperfection  and  impurity  came 
not  near  his  hallowed  person.  Clad  with  the  gar- 
ments of  eternal  righteousness,  he  was  "  holy, 
harmless,  undefiled."  On  every  virtue  that  he 
practised,  he  shed  the  light  of  divine  glory ;  in 
every  duty  that  he  discharged,  he  exhibited  the 
splendour  of  divine  holiness. 

And  his  example  thus  perfect  was  universal. 

Even  in  the  possession  of  the  most  brilliant 
talents,  man,  from  the  weakness  and  error  to  which 
his  nature  is  subject,  is  not  calculnted  to  shine  in 
all  the  various  characters  and  situations  of  life. 
The  circumstances  that  influence  the  exertions  of 
the  human  powers  are  so  varied,  that  in  no  one 
individual  can  be  found  the  sublime  talents  and 
powers  necessary  to  meet  all  the  varying  calls  of 
duty,  and  to  shine  forth  with  perfect  lustre  in  every 
change  of  situation.  To  exhibit  with  the  highest 
splendour  all  the  varied  and  opposite  virtues  of 
our  nature,  and  to  shine  forth  with  the  highest 
excellence  in  all  the  numerous  and  variously  modi- 
fied relations  of  duty,  was  alone  the  attribute  of 
him  who  united  to  a  human  a  divine  nature. 

And  his  example  thus  perfect,  discharging  every 
duty  to  the  uttermost — thus  universal,  extending  to 
every  virtue — was  aUo  familiar,  coming  down  to 
the  level  of  ordinary  scenes  and  ordinary  duties. 

Vol.  III.  2 


10  THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER 

Lastly.  The  light  of  the  glorious  Gospel  is 
dispensed  in  the  illuminating  grace  of  the  Holy 
Spirit. 

The  natural  weakness  of  the  powers  of  the 
human  mind,  and  the  opposition  of  its  prejudices 
and  passions  to  tiie  exalted  and  holy  truths  of  the 
Gospel,  would  seem  to  indicate  the  necessity  of 
divine  illumination,  of  a  constant  communion  be- 
tween the  soul  and  that  Being  who  is  the  only 
source  of  spiritual  knowledge.  That  the  mode  of 
this  communion  is  inscrutable,  constitutes  no  ob- 
jection to  it ;  for  no  truth  which  relates  to  the 
divine  mind  and  the  divine  operations  can  be 
brought  within  the  comprehension  of  our  finite 
faculties.  The  doctrine  of  divine  illumination  and 
grace  seems  indeed  to  be  a  sentiment  of  nature : 
it  is  the  foundation  of  all  those  invocations  for 
direction  and  aid  which  the  wise  and  good,  in  every 
age,  have  addressed  to  the  infinite  though  unknown 
fountain  of  truth,  and  goodness,  and  power.  Grate- 
ful then  should  we  be  that  the  Gospel  provides 
those  illuminations  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  by  which  we 
are  enlightened  to  discern  and  to  receive  the  great 
truths  of  salvation,  and  guided  "  in  the  ways  of 
God's  laws,  and  in  the  works  of  his  command- 
ments." 

When  then,  my  brethren,  the  light  of  the  glorious 
Gospel  thus  illuminates  by  the'  splendour  of  its 
revelations,  the  clearness  of  its  precepts,  the  bright- 
ness of  the  example  which  it  furnishes,  and  the 
grace  of  the  Holy  Spirit  which  it  dispenses,  let  it 
not  be  our  condemnation  that  light  has  thus  come 
into  the  world,  and  we  have  chosen  darkness  rather 
than  light.  How  inestimable  is  that  Gospel  which 
thus  afl'ords  full  and  infallible  instruction  on  those 


OF  THE  GOSPEL.  11 

spiritual  and  immortal  interests  of  man,  in  regard 
to  which  reason  could  afford  only  plausible  conjec- 
tures! The  powers  of  the  humun  intellect  among 
the  philosophers  of  the  Gentile  world,  produced 
works  of  imagination  and  genius  that  have  never 
been  surpassed:  and  yet,  on  the  subject  of  religion, 
how  erroneous  and  corrupt  their  systems,  how 
contradictory  their  conclusions,  how  feeble  and 
fluctuating  their  hopes!  (and  their  views  of  immor- 
tality were  interrupted  by  the  gloom  of  the  grave.) 
Extinguish  the  light  of  the  glorious  Gospel,  and 
darkness  covers  the  spiritual  world — man's  nature 
and  destiny,  his  duties  and  his  hopes.  In  vain  will 
his  guilty  spirit  seek  reconciliation  and  peace,  and 
explore  the  way  of  access  to  the  offended  Majesty 
of  heaven.  In  vain  will  his  virtuous  powers  pant 
after  the  full  knowledge  and  enjoyment  of  the 
Author  of  his  being,  and,  turning  with  disgust  from 
the  errors,  and  sins,  and  sorrows  of  this  world, 
look  for  perfection  and  bliss  in  an  immortal  exist- 
ence. He  sinks  into  the  grave,  hoping  indeed  that 
it  may  not  close  for  ever  upon  his  spirit,  but  yet 
dreading  lest  the  sceptre  of  oblivion  may  for  ever 
rule  his  slumbers. 

My  brethren,  the  light  of  the  glorious  Gospel 
relieves  us  from  these  doubts  and  fears  that  would 
alloy  all  our  virtuous  joys.  Let  us  often  reflect 
with  gratitude  on  the  inestimable  gift ;  on  the 
exalted  privilege  of  being  called  to  the  knowledge 
of  God,  of  Jesus  Christ  whom  he  has  sent,  whom 
to  know  is  life  eternal.  Let  us  not  obstruct,  by 
the  pride  or  presumption  of  human  reason,  or  by 
impenitence  and  sin,  the  illuminating  eflicacy  of 
the  light  of  the  Gospel  on  our  hearts.  Humble, 
submissive,  penitent,  and  obedient,  let  us  seek,  by 


12        THE  ILLUMINATING  POWER  OF  THE  GOSPEL. 

fervent  prayer,  that  divine  illumination  and  grace 
by  which  our  faith  will  daily  become  more  strong 
and  triumphant,  and  our  obedience  daily  more 
sincere  and  holy,  until  our  faith  shall  terminate 
in  the  vision  of  the  transcendent  brightness  of  the 
divine  glory,  and  our  obedience  in  the  rewards  of 
perfect  asd  eternal  bliss. 


SERMON  11. 


THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  CHRIST  TO  THE  SOUL  OF  THE 
BELIEVER. 


2  Cor.  iv.  6. 

For  God,  who  commanded  the  light  to  shine  out  of  darkness,  hath 
shined  in  our  hearts,  to  give  the  light  of  the  knowledge  of  the 
glory  of  God  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ. 

The  glorious  renovation   of  man  by  the  spirit 
and   power  of  Jesus  Christ,  is  compared   by   the 
apostle  to  the  magnificent  work  of  creation,  when, 
at   the    almighty  fiat  of  God,   the  beautiful    and 
stupendous  fabric  of  the  universe  arose  from  the 
dark   and  gloomy  void.     Not  less  profound   and 
dreary  the  chaos  into  which  sin  had  plunged  the 
moral  world.     Not  less  splendid   and   efficacious 
that  fiat  which  illuminated  the  nations  that  sat  in 
darkness  and  the  shadow  of  death,  with  the  reno- 
vating beams  of  divine  and  celestial  knowledge. 
The  splendid  event  which,  revealing  the  new-born 
Saviour  to  the  wise  men  of  the  East,  was  a  sio-n 
and  pledge  of  his  future  manifestation  to  the  whole 
world,  both  as  a  light  to  lighten  the  Gentiles,  and 
the  glory  of  his  people  Israel,  the  church  comme- 
morates at  this  season.     The  external  illumination 
of  the  world  by  that  glorious  Sun  of  Righteousness 
which   arose   upon   it,    dispensing  healing  in   his 
beams,  would  be  a  subject  not  less  appropriate  to 
the  season  than  fruitful  of  sublime  and  useful  in- 
struction.   But  to  little  purpose  will  the  illuminat- 


14  THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  CHRIST 

ing  beams  of  the  Sun  of  Righteousness  be  shed 
around,  unless  our  hearts  experience  their  vivifying 
power.  To  our  utter  condemnation  it  will  tend 
that  light  has  come  into  the  world,  if  we  choose 
darkness  rather  than  light.  The  mind  of  man, 
clouded  by  error  and  wrapped  in  sin,  resembles 
that  dreary  chaos  from  which  God  elicited  the 
world.  And  God,  who  at  the  first  commanded  the 
light  to  shine  out  of  darkness,  must  shine  into  our 
hearts,  or  we  shall  be  ignorant  of  the  knowledge  of 
his  glory  in  the  face  of  Christ  Jesus.  That  Saviour, 
in  whose  person,  character,  and  offices,  the  glory 
of  God  shines  with  the  most  resplendent  lustre, 
must  not  only  receive  our  external  homage,  our 
nominal  acknowledgment  and  belief — our  under- 
standings must  discern  his  excellence  and  glory, 
our  hearts  must  experience  his  illuminating  and 
renovating  power,  there  must  be  a  spiritual  mani- 
festation of  him  to  the  soul.  Then,  transformed 
out  of  darkness  into  his  marvellous  light,  redeemed 
from  the  bondage  of  error  and  dominion  of  sin  into 
the  glorious  liberty  of  the  sons  of  God,  we  shall 
discern  with  clearness,  and  with  the  ineflable  emo- 
tions of  transport,  the  glory  of  God  in  the  face  of 
Christ  Jesus.  To  this  spiritual  manifestation  of 
the  Saviour  to  the  soul  let  me  then  direct  your 
attention,  as  a  subject  on  which  depends  your  right 
knowledge  of  the  Saviour  and  your  cordial  recep- 
tion of  him,  and  of  consequence  your  restoration 
to  the  image  and  favour  of  God,  and  your  ever- 
lasting salvation. 

And  do  thou,  divine  fountain  of  illuminating 
grace!  let  not  thy  ministering  servant  speak  in 
vain.  In  vain  indeed  will  be  his  most  powerful 
efforts  to  manifest  thy  glory,  divine  Saviour,  unless 


TO  THE  SOUL  OP  THE  BELIEVER.  15 

accompanied  by  thy  quickening  spirit.  Arise  now, 
then,  in  the  resistless  majesty  of  thy  strength; 
dispel  the  mists  of  error,  burst  the  vail  of  sin 
which  shrouds  our  hearts,  and  pour  thyself  upon 
them  in  the  benignant  effulgence  of  thy  glory,  an 
all-sufficient  and  almighty  Redeemer. 

The  Saviour  must  be  spiritually  manifested  to 
the  soul. 

I.  I  shall  establish  this  truth. 

II.  I  shall  explain  in  what  this  manifestation 
consists. 

1.  There  must  be  a  spiritual  manifestation  of 
the  Saviour  to  the  soul. 

To  establish  this  truth,  it  might  be  necessary  for 
me  only  to  mention  that  a  Saviour,  who  comes  to 
restore  us  from  error,  to  redeem  us  from  sin,  to 
effect  our  redemption,  must  necessarily  exert  his 
power  on  our  souls.  There  we  must  discern  him, 
there  we  must  acknowledge  him,  there  we  must 
feel  the  power  of  his  grace.  Our  souls  are  the 
seat  of  the  vices  that  are  to  be  subdued;  in  them 
are  the  sources  that  must  be  purified  before  the 
streams  of  virtue  will  flow ;  in  them  are  the  springs 
of  those  desires  and  affections  which  are  to  be 
satisfied  with  the  fulness  of  divine  consolation  and 
love.  They  must,  therefore,  be  the  scene  where 
the  Saviour  is  to  display  his  conquests,  to  erect 
the  trophies  of  victory,  to  exert  the  sceptre  of  his 
grace.  Before  his  enlightening  beams  the  shades 
of  error  which  envelop  our  minds  must  flee  away, 
and  the  effulgence  of  divine  truth  be  shed  upon 
them ;  the  upbraidings  of  conscience,  the  agoniz- 
ing pangs  of  guilt,  must  be  pacified  by  the  merits 


16  THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  CHRIST 

of  his  blood,  diffusing  peace  and  reconciliation ; 
the  swelling  emotions  of  sensual  desire,  the  angry 
tempests  of  guilty  passion,  must  be  quelled  by  the 
energy  of  his  spirit,  restoring  the  soul  to  rectitude 
and  virtue.  Our  souls,  in  fine,  are  to  be  redeemed 
from  error,  from  guilt,  and  sin,  by  the  mercy  and 
grace  of  Jesus  Christ.  Going  forth  conquering 
and  to  conquer,  his  office  it  is  to  "  cast  down  im- 
aginations and  every  high  tiling  that  exalteth  itself 
against  the  knowledge  of  God,  and  to  bring  into 
captivity  every  thought  to  the  obedience  of  Christ." 
In  effecting  these  glorious  purposes,  he  must  be 
manifested  to  our  souls  both  in  the  rich  fulness  of 
his  mercy  and  the  almighty  energies  of  his  grace. 

If,  from  the  consideration  tlmt  the  salvation  of 
Christ  is  a  spiritual  salvation,  and  that  his  office  is 
to  enlighten,  pardon,  and  redoeni  us,  it  necessarily 
results  that  there  must  be  a  spiritual  manifestation 
of  him  to  the  soul,  this  truth  will  be  rendered  still 
more  apparent,  by  considering  the  nature  of  those 
aflfections  and  duties  which  we  are  to  discharge 
towards  the  Redeemer.  The  claims  of  this  divine 
and  glorious  personage  to  our  profound  adoration^ 
to  our  fervent  love,  to  our  lively  gratitude,  to  our 
unbounded  confidence,  to  our  sincere  and  zealous 
obedience,  will  not  be  contested.  How  then  can 
we  exercise  towards  him  these  exalted  affections 
till  our  understandings  discern  his  excellence  and 
glory,  till  our  souls  are  forcibly  impressed  with  the 
exalted  and  endearing  relations  which  he  sustains- 
towards  us  I  Will  we  bow  before  him  in  profound 
adoration,  until  we  discern  and  acknowledge  the 
divine  glories  of  his  nature,  as  the  only-begotten 
of  the  Father,  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of 
lords-?     Will  the  lively  fervours  of  gratitude  and 


TO  THE  SOUL  OF  THE  BELIEVER*  17 

Jove  be  excited  but  by  the  manifestation  to  our 
souls  of  the   divine  and  endearing  virtues  which 
shed   around   the   Redeemer   the   mild    lustre  of 
celestial  glory,  and  present  him  to  us  as  the  chief 
among  ten   thousand,    and   altogether  lovely,  the 
Lamb  of  God,  who  was  wounded  for  our  sins  and 
bruised  for  our  iniquities  1     Will  we  cast  upon  him 
the  heavy  load  of  our  sins,  and  repose  on  him  the 
burden   of  our  sorrows,  until  we  discern  the   all- 
sufficiency  of  his  mercy,  the  fulness  of  his  grace — 
until  he  is  manifested  to  our  souls  as  a  Saviour 
possessed  of  resistless  power,  and  animated  with 
infinite  desire  to  succour  and   restore  us  I     Will 
we  yield  him  the  tribute  of  zealous  and  holy  obe- 
dience, while  we  are  insensible  to  the  excellence 
and  glory  of  his  person,  to  the  rich  displays  of  his 
mercy  and  love  towards  us?     Ah!  superficial  and 
feeble  will  be  that  homage,  that  love,  that  confi- 
dence, that  obedience,  which  are  not  founded  on  a 
just  appreciation  of  the   excellence   and  glory  of 
the  Saviour,  on  a  clear  view  of  the  important  and 
endearing  offices  which  he  sustains  towards  us,  on 
a  lively  impression  of  the  riches  of  that  mercy  and 
grace  which  he  freely  and  fully  dispenses.     Until 
we  discern  the  excellence  and  worth  of  the  object, 
in  vain  shall  we  seek  to  rouse  affection ;  until  the 
eyes  of  our  understandings  are  enlightened  to  dis- 
cern the  Saviour,  indistinct  and  uncertain  will  be 
our  conceptions  of  him;   until  we  know  him  in 
whom  we  are  to  believe,  feeble  and  comfortless 
will  be  our  faith  ;  until  God  shines  into  our  hearts 
to  give  us  the  knowledge  of  his  glory  in  the  face  of 
Jesus  Christ,  the  vail  of  blindness  will  cover  them. 
An  unknown  Saviour  cannot  exert  his  power,  can- 
not dispense  his  blessings,  cannot  awaken  affection. 
Vol.  Ill,  S 


liJ  THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  CHRIST 

inspire  confidence  and  hope,  or  command  obedi- 
ence. Blessed  Jesus  I  it  is  only  when  manifested 
to  our  souls  in  the  riches  of  thy  mercies,  in  the 
exhaustless  treasures  of  thy  grace,  in  the  glorious 
effulgence  of  thy  divine  nature,  that  thou  dost 
appear  infinitely  worthy  our  ardent  love,  our  un- 
bounded confidence,  our  eternal  obedience  and 
duty. 

2.  The  Saviour  then  must  be  manifested  to  our 
souls.  Under  what  characters  must  this  manifes- 
tation take  place  I  This  is  the  second  object  of 
inquiry. 

Christ  manifests  himself  to  the  soul,  as  a  Saviour 
atoning  for  sin  by  the  merits  of  his  blood,  redeem- 
ing from  sin  by  the  efficacy  of  his  grace,  restoring 
the  soul  by  his  almighty  power  to  the  favour  of 
God,  to  immortal  blessedness  and  glory.  As  a 
Saviour  pardoning  sin,  as  a  Saviour  subduing  sin, 
as  a  Saviour  conferring  everlasting  redemption, 
does  the  true  believer  discern  the  Saviour,  and 
exercise  upon  him  the  triumphs  of  holy  faith. 

When  the  Spirit  of  God,  lighting  up  the  accusa- 
tions of  conscience,  presses  upon  the  trembling 
soul  of  the  sinner  the  conviction  of  his  guilt ;  when, 
enlightened   to   discern    the   inflexible    claims   of 
God's  justice,  the  unspotted  rigour  of  divine  holi- 
ness, he  trembles  under  the  sentence  of  condemna- 
tion which   his   sins   have  merited,  which  divine 
justice  and  holiness  exact;  when,  turning  his  view 
on  his  own  character  and  condition,  he  finds  him- 
self condemned  at  the  bar  of  eternal  justice,  pos- 
sessed of  no   plea   to  avert   the  vengeance   that 
impends  over  him,  no  power  to  render  that  un- 
spotted obedience  which  divine  holiness  exacts ; 


TO  THE  SOUL  OF  THE  BELIEVER.        19 

when  the  sou?  of  the  sinner  is  thus  abased  and 
humbled,  Christ  manifests  himself  as  a  Siiviour 
expiating  sins  by  the  merit  of  his  blood.  I  have 
trodden  the  wine-press  of  divine  wrath  ;  I  have 
nailed  to  my  cross  the  sentence  of  condemnation ; 
my  blood  has  flowed  a  ransom  for  the  guilty ; 
sprinkled  on  the  mercy-seat,  it  propitiates  divine 
justice.  "  Come  unto  me  all  ye  who  labour  and  are 
heavy  laden,  and  I  will  give  you  rest."*  Soothing 
and  enlivening  these  heavenly  accents  of  his  com- 
passionate Redeemer  descend  into  the  soul  of  the 
penitent  sinner.  He  beholds  the  arms  of  mercy 
extended  towards  him — he  beholds  the  bosom  of 
the  Saviour  open  to  receive  him  to  rest  and  peace — 
infinite  mercy  and  infinite  power  shedding  around 
the  Son  of  God  their  glorious  eflfulgence — every 
doubt  is  dispelled — hushed  every  apprehension — 
vigorous  and  triumphant  confidence  animates  his 
spirit.  Wretched  and  guilty,  he  flees  to  the  Friend 
of  the  wretched,  to  the  Saviour  of  sinners.  His 
weary  and  heavy  laden  soul  sinks  to  soothing  rest 
in  the  bosom  of  his  Lord.  Sheltered  there,  the 
tempest  of  divine  justice  passes  by  unheard  ;  the 
light  of  the  reconciled  countenance  of  his  God 
alone  shines  upon  him ;  his  Saviour  intercedes  for 
him  as  the  purchase  of  his  blood ;  to  his  Saviour 
he  clings  as  his  Lord  and  his  God,  his  tender  and 
unfailing  friend  and  protector.  O  my  Saviour ! 
feeble  is  language  to  display  the  power  of  thy 
manifestation  to  the  soul  of  the  penitent ;  feeble  is 
language  to  convey  the  joy  and  transport  which 
exhilarate  the  bosom  where  thy  mercy  dispenses 
its  healing  balm. 

*  Mgtthew  xi,  28. 


fO 


THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  CHRIST 


Nor  confined  is  this  manifestation  of  Christ  to 
the  single  office  of  a  Saviour  expiating  by  his  blood 
the  guilt  of  sin.  Ineifectual  even  would  be  the 
consolation  conveyed  to  the  soul  of  the  penitent  by 
the  dispensation  of  forgiveness,  if  sin,  left  to  un- 
controlled dominion,  were  still  permitted  to  blast 
his  peace,  to  load  his  conscience  with  new  trans- 
gressions, to  arm  with  redoubled  vengeance  the 
shafts  of  divine  justice.  The  awakened  penitent  is 
deeply  impressed  with  the  enormity,  the  baseness, 
and  guilt  of  sin.  Whether  he  regards  it  as  destruc- 
tive to  the  purity  and  peace  of  his  soul,  as  awaken- 
ing against  him  the  wrath  of  heaven,  or  as  tinged 
with  the  heavy  guilt  of  ingratitude  and  rebellion 
against  his  Maker  and  God,  his  liveliest  indignation 
is  aroused  against  it,  his  most  zealous  and  strenuous 
resolutions  engaged  in  a  contest  with  it.  But  alas! 
when  he  considers  how  pure,  how  strict,  how  un- 
deviating  the  obedience  which  a  holy  and  just  God 
exacts,  when  he  considers  what  exalted  fervours  of 
love  and  acts  of  duty  are  due  to  that  God  who  has 
blotted  out  his  iniquities,  to  that  Saviour  who 
bought  him  with  his  own  most  precious  blood ;  and 
when  he  considers  what  errors  and  prejudices  cloud 
his  understanding,  what  sensual  appetites  and  pas- 
sions control  and  enslave  his  will,  and  corrupt  and 
debase  his  virtuous  affections,  what  a  host  of  temp- 
tations assail  him,  either  assuming  an  alluring  garb, 
imperceptibly  to  obtain  the  victory  over  him,  or  by 
sudden  and  violent  force  overpowering  his  holy 
resolutions;  when  he  thus  considers  his  impotence 
and  depravity,  the  law  of  his  members  warring 
against  the  law  of  his  mind,  and  bringing  him  into 
captivity,  he  sinks  under  the  conviction  of  his  weak- 
ness and  unworthiness  ;  his  agonized  soul  bursts 


TO  THE  SOUL  OP  THE  BELIEVER.  21 

forth  into  the  exclamation  of  despair — "  Wretched 
man  that  I  am !  who  shall  deliver  me  from  the  body 
of  this  death  1"*  This  is  the  moment  for  the  Saviour 
to  pour  upon  the  soul  the  glorious  manifestation  of 
his  power  and  grace.     "  I  am  he  who  giveth  you 
the  victory ;  the  Spirit  of  the  Lord  is  upon  me ;  for 
he  anointed  me  to  proclaim  liberty  lo  the  captives, 
and  the  opening  of  the  prison  to  them  that  are 
bound."t     "  Strengthen  then  the  weak  hands,  and 
confirm  the  feeble  knees ;  my  grace  shall  be  suffi- 
cient for  you,  my  strength  shall  be  made  perfect  in 
your  weakness.     I  will  strengthen  thee ;  yea,  I  will 
help  thee  ;  yea,  I  will  uphold  thee  with  the  right 
hand  of  my  righteousness."t   With  these  invigorat- 
ing assurances,  does  the  Saviour  manifest  himself 
to  the  soul  as  its  almighty  Sanctifier.     The  fulness 
of  the  Godhead  dwelling  in  him,  he  sheds  on  the 
mind  divine  light  and  knowledge,  he  invests  the 
soul  with  the  spotless  robes  of  righteousness,  he 
rules  every  rebellious  passion  by  the  sceptre  of  his 
grace.    The  penitent  believer  no  longer  bows  down 
in  despair  under  the  enslaving  chains  of  sin.     At 
the  almighty  voice  of  the  Son  of  God  they  fell 
from  him,  leaving  him  in  the  glorious  liberty  of  the 
sons  of  God.     With  profound  homage  he  adores 
the  Saviour  who  is  manifested  to  his  soul  in  the 
fulness  of  grace  and  salvation.   "My  Lord  and  my 
God,"  expresses  at  once  profound  adoration ;  the 
fervours  of  confidence,  the  resolutions  of  grateful 
and  submissive  love.     With  triumphant  and  unde- 
viating  faith  he  clings  to  that  Saviour  who  is  made 
unto  him  wisdom,  and  righteousness,  and  sanctifi- 
cation,  and  redemption.    Glorious  and  triumphant, 

*  Rom.  vii.  24.  t  isa.  Ixi.  1.  f  Isa.  xli.  10. 


22  THE  MANIFESTATION  OF  CHRIST 

blessed  Saviour,  is  thy  manifestation  to  the  soul, 
when  thou  dost  redeem  her  from  corrupt  passions, 
and  shed  upon  her  holy  and  celestial  graces ! 

Faith  has  now  opened  to  the  true  believer  those 
manifestations  of  the  mercy  and  grace  of  Christ 
which  afford  him  the  joyful  assurance  of  rescue 
from  the  guilt  and  from  the  dominion  of  sin.  But, 
to  complete  his  redemption,  and  to  render  perfect 
the  character  and  office  of  the  Saviour,  another 
glorious  work  must  be  effected.  The  believer  looks 
forward  with  awful  apprehension  to  the  contest  in 
which  he  must  engage  with  death,  the  inexorable 
enemy  of  man.  Who  shall  assuage  the  agonies  of 
the  conflict  1  Who  shall  endue  his  trembling  spirit 
with  strength  to  sustain  it  1  On  whose  kind  rod 
shall  he  rest  when,  harassed  and  sinking,  he  passes 
through  the  dark  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death  1 
Who  will  conduct  him  to  the  everlasting  hills,  to 
the  celestial  city  of  the  living  God?  Who  will 
resuscitate  his  body  from  the  sleep  of  the  grave, 
and  rescuing  it  from  the  bands  of  corruption,  invest 
it  with  immortal  garments'?  Who  will  advance 
his  soul  to  those  seats  of  blessedness,  to  those 
immortal  felicities,  to  that  eternal  fruition  of  the 
presence  of  God,  which  no  strength  of  nature  can 
attain,  which  infinitely  exceed  the  merit  of  the 
most  splendid  virtue  1  Ah !  these  are  suggestions 
which,  when  the  believer  regards  only  the  weak- 
ness, the  infirmity,  and  imperfection  of  his  own 
nature,  overwhelm  with  despondency  and  despair. 
But  the  splendid  glory  of  the  Saviour  disperses  this 
gloom.  In  majestic  power  he  rises  on  the  soul  of 
the  believer,  as  the  almighty  conqueror  over  death 
and  the  grave.  "  O  death,  I  have  been  thy  plague ; 
O  grave,  I  have  been  thy  destruction.     Fear  not. 


TO  THE  SOUL  OF  THE  BELIEVER.  23 

for  f  am  with  you;  be  not  dismayed,  for  I  am  your 
God.     I  will  redeem  you  from  death,  I  will  ransom 
you  from  the  power  of  the  grave."*  "  In  my  Father's 
iiouse  are  many  mansions ;  I  have  gone  before  to 
prepare  a  place  for  you,  that  where  I  am  there  ye 
may  be  also."!     Glorious  manifestation  of  the  Re- 
deemer, which  causes  the  soul  of  the  believer  to 
triumph,  and  arms  him  with  strength  to  encounter 
and  overcome  the  king  of  terrors.     The  Saviour  is 
seated.  Lord  of  all  things,  on  the  throne  of  glory; 
and  where  he  is,  there  his  faithful  people  shall  be 
also. 

*  Hosea  xiii.  14.  t  John  xiv.  'J,  ii. 


SERMON  III. 


THE  FOLLY  OF  TRUSTING  TO  THE  FUTURE 


James  iv.  14. 
Ye  know  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow. 

Figure  to  yourselves  a  frail,  dependent,  and 
erring  being,  surrounded  by  a  thousand  contin- 
gences  over  which  he  has  no  control,  assailed  by 
casualties  that  arrest  his  hopes,,  thwart  his  best 
concerted  plans,  and  often  blast  his  most  flourishing 
enjoyments;  who,  in  his  most  prosperous  state, 
with  every  pleasure  to  gratify  his  desires,  with  every 
mean  which  wealth  and  power  can  furnish  to  ward 
off"  the  assaults  of  calamity,  must  yet  obey  the 
summons  that  calls  him  for  ever  from  the  scene  of 
his  beloved  delights.  Would  you  suppose  that  a 
being  thus  situated  could  be  engrossed  with  the 
objects  around  him,  that  he  could  be  heedless  of 
the  event  that  may  every  moment  hurry  him  into 
an  eternal  state  of  existence^  And  yet,  my  bre- 
thren, you  here  behold  a  picture  of  the  condition, 
and  you  may  here  recognise  the  criminal  and  un- 
accountable infatuation  of  man.  Though  he  hold 
his  enjoyments  by  a  tenure  so  uncertain,  that  he 
"  knows  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow;"  though 
disappointment  continually  mocks  his  most  vigorous 
and  well  directed  exertions ;  though  he  must  soon 
fall,  (yes,  on  the  morrow,  or  to-day,)  under  the 
stroke  of  that  foe  who  often  gives  his  victims  no 


THE  FOLLY  OP  TRUSTING  TO  THtE  FUTURE.       Uti 

warning  of  his  approach;  though  the  experience  of 
every  day  brings  home  to  his  heart  the  uncertainty 
of  life  and  all  its  joys,  we  yet  behold  him  eager  and 
unwearied  in  the  pursuit  of  them,  devoting  to  them 
his  supreme  attention  and  exertion.  He  goes  on 
his  career  self-confident,  ambitious,  daring,  as  if  he 
were  the  master  of  his  own  destiny,  and  held  in  his 
hand  those  numerous  casualties  that  arrest  his 
career  and  darken  his  prospect;  or  as  if  he  could 
repel  the  messenger  death — "  Go  thy  way,  at  a 
more  convenient  season  I  will  heed  thee."* 

Widely  different  is  the  conduct  to  which  a  just 
estimate  of  the  changeable  and  uncertain  nature  of 
all  worldly  objects  would  direct  us — "  we  know  not 
what  will  be  on  the  morrow."  Humility  in  pros- 
perity, moderation  in  the  pursuit  and  enjoyment  of 
the  things  of  the  world,  and  above  all,  the  abstrac- 
tion of  our  thoughts  from  the  present  scene,  so  as 
habitually  to  prepare  for  the  event,  that,  at  an  un- 
certain period  may  separate  us  from  it,  are  the 
virtues  which  should  arise  from  a  just  estimate  of 
human  life.  Frequent  reflection  on  its  vanity  and 
uncertainty  would  tend,  more  than  any  other  con- 
sideration, to  moderate  all  our  feelings  and  views 
in  regard  to  it,  and  to  excite  us  earnestly  and 
anxiously  to  seek  the  enduring  realities  of  a  future 
world. 

"  Ye  know  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow." 

How  vain,  then,  all  the  triumphs  of  prosperity  ! 

How  absurd  a  proud  confidence  in  ourselves! 

Above  all,  how  unwise  that  attachment  to  fhe 
world  which  prevents  us  from  preparing  iot  the 
inevitable  event  of  our  departure  from  it  ? 
*  Acts  xxiv.  25. 

VoL.m,  4 


26*  THE  FOLLY  OF  TRUSTINGT 

"  Ye  know  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow." 
How  vain,  then,  all  the  triumphs  of  prosperity ! 
To  behold  the  elation  and  proud  independence 
which  prosperity  often  inspires  in  the  mind  of  man^. 
the  confident  ardour  with  which  he  cherishes  new 
schemes  of  wealth  and  power,  and  the  bold  pre- 
sumption with  which  he  defies  the  assaults  of  ad- 
versity, you  would  suppose  that  he  was  defended 
with  an  ethereal  armour,  and  that  the  fabric  of  his 
felicity  was  founded  on  a  rock  enduring  and  stable. 
But  the  consideration  of  the  uncertain  tenure  by 
which  he  holds  his  present  enjoyments,  exhibits  in 
glaring  colours  the  folly  and  the  impiety  of  this 
self-confident  presumption,   this  proud  and  vain- 
glorious boasting.    "  Thou  knowest  not  what  shall 
be  on  the  morrow."     The  events  of  the  morrow  are 
beyond  thy  control.    Hidden  in  the  secret  counsels 
of  Providence,  they  mock  thy  most  inquisitive  scru- 
tiny, elude  thy  most  ingenious  arts,  and  baflfle  thy 
most  vigorous  power.    Some  violent  casualty,  some 
change  of  affairs,  which  no  foresight  could  discover, 
against  which  no  prudence  could  provide,  may,  in 
the  moment  of  fancied  security,  thwart  thy  best 
concerted  plans,  and  demolish  the  towering  struc- 
ture of  thy  prosperity.     Thy  frail  bark  is  tossed  on 
an  ocean  which  capricious  tempests  agitate  ;   and 
he  who  one  moment  mounts  on  the  swelling  surge^ 
is  plunged  the  next  into  the  abyss  which  threatens 
to  overwhelm  him.     Every  day's  esperionce  proves 
that  "  the  race  is  not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to 
the  strong;"*  that  the  most  prudent  vigilance,  the 
most  strenuous  exertions,  will  not  always  ensure 
success,  nor  the  boldest  arm  of  human  power  ward 
off  the  stroke  of  misfortune.    How  vain  then  thy 

*  Eccles.  ix.  11, 


TO  THE  FUTURE.  27 

eiation  and  thy  presumptuous  confidence  in  that 
prosperity  which  a  thousand  accidents  may  subvert ! 
The  unseen  arm  of  an  almighty  power  irresistibly 
directs  all  events,  and  controls  all  thy  actions.  He 
will  mock  the  puny  efforts  of  thy  presumptuous 
strength;  he  can  defeat  the  best  arranged  schemes 
of  thy  inordinate  ambition  ;  whenever  the  sugges- 
tions of  his  infinite  wisdom  and  sovereign  power 
dictate,  he  will  turn  from  thee  the  current  of  jDros- 
perity,  and  the  blessings  and  advantages  of  which 
thou  dost  now  proudly  boast,  will  be  the  portion  of 
another. 

Learn  then,  my  brethren,  from  the  uncertainty  of 
all  human  enjoyments,  to  indulge  with  moderation 
in  the  blessings  of  prosperity.  Let  not  those  ad- 
ventitious gifts  elate  you,  of  which  the  capricious 
events  of  the  future  may  deprive  you.  Cultivate, 
even  in  the  exhilaration  of  prosperity,  that  humble 
and  dependent  spirit,  that  deep  sense  of  the  un- 
certainty of  all  human  enjoyments,  which  will  lead 
you  to  employ  aright  the  blessings  which  distinguish 
you,  and  prepare  you  to  bear,  at  least  with  compo- 
sure, the  unforeseen  stroke  that  may  tear  them  from 
you.  Consider  all  the  advantages  which  you  enjoy, 
as  talents  intrusted  to  you  for  wise  purposes,  by  the 
Almighty  Giver  of  all  good ;  and,  above  all,  remem- 
ber he  will  call  you  to  a  strict  and  solemn  account 
of  the  use  you  make  of  them  while  in  your  posses- 
sion. 

"  You  know  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow/' 
How  absurd,  then,  a  proud  confidence  in  our- 
selves ! 

If  all  the  events  which  affect  our  prosperity  were 
placed  perfectly  within  our  eontrol,  and  if  we  could 


^  THE  FOLLY  OF  TRUSTING 

always  foresee  the  dangerous  assaults  to  which  our 
virtue  would  be  exposed,  we  might  then  have  some 
ground  for  confidenee  in  the  dictates  of  our  own 
prudence  and  the  efforts  of  our  own  strength.  But 
since  events  which  have  the  most  important  effect 
on  our  interest  and  our  happiness  often  defy  the 
kneenest  foresight  and  bafHe  the  provisions  of  the 
most  consummate  sagacity,  since  our  virtue  is  ex- 
posed to  the  sudden  and  violent  assaults  of  the 
most  alluring  temptations,  a  proud  confidence  in 
our  own  wisdom  and  power  is  not  more  presump- 
tuous than  dangerous.  Self-confidence  lulls  that 
vigilance  and  caution  which,  fortified  and  guided 
by  divine  grace,  are  the  only  effectual  guards  of 
our  piety  and  virtue.  "  Let  him  that  thinketh  he 
standi^th,  take  heed  lest  he  fall."*  How  often  does 
that  self-confident  strength  which  to-day  boasts  its 
efficacy  and  reposes  in  security,  to-morrow  fall  a 
victim  to  an  unexpected  temptation  dressed  in  some 
uovel  and  alluring  garb !  The  lesson  which  we 
should  learn  from  the  uncertainty  of  every  thing 
Jiuman,  is  to  distrust  ourselves,  to  acknowledge 
our  own  weakness,  and  to  seek  that  almighty 
strength  which  will  give  success  to  our  eflbrts, 
wliich  will  enable  us  to  sustain  and  to  repel  the 
most  powerful  assaults  of  our  spiritual  enemies. 
"  Ye  know  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow." 
Temptations  may  assail  you,  which  in  a  moment 
may  hurl  you  from  the  heights  of  virtue  into  trans» 
gression,  and  shame,  and  remorse.  Look  forward, 
then,  to  thy  future  course,  not  with  confident  pre- 
sumption, but  with  solicitude  and  apprehension. 
Reflect  often  on  the  number  and  power  of  the 
temptations  which  surround  you,  and  on  the  weak- 

*  1  Cor.  X.  12. 


TO  THE  FUTURE.  29 

®e«s  of  your  own  resolutions  and  your  own  efforts, 
and  turn  with  deep  distrust  from  yourselves  to  that 
almighty  Being  who  is  ready  to  succour  you.  Sup- 
plicate with  earnest,  with  humble,  with  persevering 
fervour,  that  all-powerful  grace  which  alone,  by 
quickening  and  strengthening  your  own  powers  and 
exertions,  can  keep  you  from  falling,  can  defend 
you  through  the  vicissitudes  of  life,  and  through 
the  seducing  temptations  to  which,  in  this  your 
state  of  probation,  you  are  constantly  exposed. 

"  Ye  know  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow." 
How  unwise  then  that  inordinate  attachment  to 
the  world,  which  prevents  us  from  preparing  for  the 
inevitable,  but,  as  to  the  time  of  its  occurrence, 
uncertain  event  which  is  to  separate  us  from  it. 

If  daily  experience  did  not  verify  the  lamentable 
fact,  could  we  be  persuaded  to  believe  that  man, 
who  is  doomed  to  sink  under  the  stroke  of  death, 
who  labours  under  fearful  uncertainty  in  regard  to 
the  time  when  that  stroke  shall  separate  him  for 
ever  from  the  world,  would  yet  remain  in  a  state 
of  indifference  and  insensibility  as  to  those  eternal 
interests  that  succeed  the  evanescent  concerns  of 
time;  as  profoundly  occupied  with  sublunary  ob- 
jects, as  if  the  tie  that  binds  him  to  them  were 
never  to  be  sundered,  or  as  if  he  could  place  this 
dread  event  at  an  immense  distance  1  Though 
every  day  conducts  to  the  tomb  some  of  his  fellow- 
mortals,  arrested  in  that  vigorous  bloom  of  health 
which  now  freshens  his  countenance  and  enlivens 
his  heart,  in  the  full  flush  of  that  worldly  desire 
and  enjoyment  in  which  he  revels;  though  the  un- 
ei-ring  aim  of  death  sometimes  arrests,  without 
warnmg,  his  careless  vioiims,  and  instantly  palsieg 


so  THE  POLLY  OF  TRUSTING 

the  Stoutest  frame,  man  shuts  his  heart  to  this  voice 
of  warning  which  speaks  from  the  chambers  of  the 
dead — "  Be  ye   also  ready."*     He  celebrates  his 
impure  pleasures  over  the  ashes  of  his  friends  and 
kindred  that  are  scarcely  cold.    What  infatuation! 
what  criminal  folly !   Boastest  thou  that  thou  holdest 
life  by  a  tenure  that  cannot  be  shaken  ;  that,  mock- 
ing the  assaults  of  death,  thou  canst  securely  prose- 
cute thy  ambitious  projects,  and  indulge  thy  sensual 
desires  t     Yes — whatever  may  be   thy  deliberate 
opinion,  this  is  the  language  of  thy  conduct.     T© 
judge  from  the  eagerness,  the  solicitude,  the  ardour, 
the  supreme  devotion  with  which  thou  dost  pursue 
the  objects  of  thy  passions,  we  would  suppose  that 
here  thou  wast  to  terminate  thy  existence ;  that  the 
world  contained  the   only   objects  worthy  of  thy 
pursuit,  and  that  could  gratify  thy  desires.     Ah ! 
"  thou  knowest  not  what  shall  be  on  the  morrow." 
Thy  separation  from  the  world  is  inevitable.     An 
eternal  destiny  awaits  thee.     The  awful  period  of 
thy  entrance  on  it  is  hidden  in  the  gloom  of  futurity. 
It  cannot  be  far  distant.     It  may  be  near  at  hand. 
Perhaps  now  the  sentence  is  passed  from  the  lips  of 
thy  almighty  Judge — "  Thy  days  are  numbered" — 
and  the  angel  of  death  is  marking  thee  for  his  next 
victim.   And  wilt  thou  then  indulge  thy  worldly  pas- 
sions, when  the  arms  of  death  may  be  encircling 
thee  1     When  eternity  opens  upon  thee  an  irrever- 
sible destiny,  shall  the  fleeting  pleasures  of  time 
engross  thy  thoughts?     When  the  tribunal  of  thy 
Judge  is  pronouncing  thy  eternal  doom,  wilt  thou 
remain  careless  and  secure  1    Alas!  that  the  sinful 
indulgences,  or  even  the  lawful  pursuits  and  enjoy- 
ments of  to-day  should  entirely  occupy  us,  when 
*  Matt.  xxiv.  44. 


TO  THE  FUTURE.  31 

we  know  not  what  may  be  on  the  morrow — when, 
on  the  morrow,  the  bright  scenes  of  prosperity  in 
which  we  now  delight,  may  have  vanished  in  dark- 
ness and  in  sorrow;  when  the  health  which  to-day 
gives  vigour  to  our  exertions  and  zest  to  our  en- 
joyments, may  to-morrow  be  exchanged  for  the 
languor  and  the  pains  of  sickness ;  when  that  life 
which  to-day  is  ours,  may  to-morrow  be  extin- 
guished in  death;  when  to-day  is  the  appointed 
time,  the  day  of  salvation,  and  to-morrow  may 
behold  us  in  that  eternity  where  is  to  be  the  award 
of  happiness  or  misery  eternal. 

Brethren,  let  the  reflection  daily  occur  to  us,  and 
be  seriously  pondered  by  us — "  we  know  not  what 
shall  be  on  the  morrow."  Let  it  be  pondered  by 
us,  in  order  that  we  may  make  him  our  refuge  under 
whose  control  is  that  morrow,  and  who  can  mark 
it  to  us  either  with  the  light  of  prosperity  or  with 
the  darkness  of  wo ;  who  can  continue  it  to  us  as 
the  gracious  peri(?d  of  our  probation,  or,  closing 
with  it  our  mortal  course,  summon  us  to  the  un- 
changing scenes  of  an  eternal  existence.  In  the 
consideration  of  the  uncertainty  which  hangs  over 
the  morrow,  let  not  this  day  pass  without  the  reso- 
lution, if  that  resolution  has  not  been  already  made 
and  executed,  to  make  our  peace  with  that  almighty 
Being  who  thus  regulates  the  destinies  of  time  and 
eternity,  and  whom  we  have  offended  by  our  sins. 
Let  his  pardon  be  implored  and  obtained  in  deep 
penitence,  in  entire  dependence  on  his  mercy  and 
grace  through  his  eternal  Son,  who,  as  at  this  time, 
he  sent  into  the  world,  to  take  upon  him  our  nature, 
and  to  become  obedient  to  the  law,  that  he  might 
free  us  from  its  penalties.  Reconciled  unto  God 
through  penitence   and  faith  in  the  merits  and 


32   THE  FOLLY  OF  TRUSTING  TO  THE  FUTURE. 

mediation  of  his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  renewed  to^ 
holiness  in  the  powers  and  affections  of  our  souls, 
and  evermore  studying  to  do  the  will  of  our  Father 
in  heaven,  we  may  confide  in  his  protection  and 
his  favour.  Whatever  may  be  the  changes  of  to- 
morrow, whatever  may  be  the  number  of  the  days 
of  our  probation,  whatever  may  be  its  vicissitudes, 
we  shall  enjoy  the  assurance  of  that  high  and  holy 
One  who  sits  on  the  throne  of  the  universe,  that 
they  shall  "  all  work  together  for  our  good,"*  all 
contribute  to  our  spiritual  improvement  here,  and  ta 
the  perfection  of  our  natures  and  the  consummation 
of  our  bliss  hereafter.  Then  the  blessings  of  pros- 
perity will  be  heightened  to  us  in  the  grateful  re- 
cognition of  the  goodness  and  love  of  the  almighty 
Benefactor  who  bestows  them;  the  sufferings  of 
this  vale  of  tears  will  be  eased  in  the  humble  but 
lively  conviction,  that  even  these  our  heavenly 
Father  and  God  designs  for  our  good,  our  eternal 
good.  And  then,  even  the  close  of  life,  the  entrance 
on  a  future  and  eternal  state  of  being,  which  to 
sinful  and  unsupported  nature  is  so  full  of  appre- 
hension, if  not  of  terror,  will  be  viewed  by  us  with 
resigned  composure,  if  not  with  triumphant  hope  ; 
for  to  us  it  will  be  the  commencement  of  that  day 
which  will  never  be  changed  by  the  vicissitudes, 
nor  clouded  by  the  sorrows,  of  time,  but  which  will 
shine  forth  in  the  splendour  of  divine  glory,  in  the 
lustre  of  a  felicity  glowing  more  and  more  through 
the  revolutions  of  eternal  ages. 

That  such  may  be  to  each  one  of  us,  brethren, 
the  termination  of  the  present  life,  God  of  his  infi- 
nite  mercy  grant,  for  Christ's  sake;  to  whom,  &c. 

*  Rom.  viii.  28. 


SERMON  IV. 


THE  INSTABILITY  OF  HUMAN  REASONINGS  IN  CONTRAST 
WITH  THE  STABILITY  OF  THE  WORD  OF  GOD. 


1  Cor.  vii.  31. 
The  ifashion  of  this  world  passeth  away. 

And  yet,  to  witness  tlie  eagerness,  the  constancy, 
the  irrepressible  perseverance  with  which  men  pur- 
sue its  gratifications  and  pleasures,  the  confidence 
which  they  place  on  its  principles  and  maxims,  one 
would  suppose  that  it  would  endure  for  ever.  Is 
not  this  infatuation  as  extraordinary  as  it  is  absurd, 
that  the  aspiring  thoughts,  the  vigorous  desires,  the 
exalted  affections  of  an  immortal  spirit,  a  spirit 
which  sprung  from  the  eternal  source  of  goodness 
and  bliss,  is  designed  finally  to  centre  its  enjoy- 
ment in  him,  should  be  wrapt  up  in  a  world,  "  the 
fashion  of  which  passeth  away?"  Ah!  may  it  not 
be  said  that  deep  sleep  hath  fallen  upon  man, 
darkening  his  understanding  and  benumbing  his 
noble  powers,  so  that  he  values  not  the  moral 
excellence  of  the  divine  perfections,  the  glories  of 
that  celestial  kingdom  for  which  he  is  destined, 
while  he  is  pleased  with  the  glittering  toys  of 
worldly  pleasure,  and  eagerly  seeks  for  happiness 
in  the  illusive  phantoms  of  worldly  wealth  and 
honour  1  In  vain  does  the  unerring  voice  of  inspi- 
ration declare  the  utter  incompetency  of  all  created 
enjoyments  to  fill  the  boundless  desires  of  a  soul 

Vol.  III.  5 


34  INSTABILITY  OF  HUMAN  REASONINGS, 

designed  to  be  satisfied  only  with  the  glory  and 
bliss  of  the  eternal  source  of  truth  and  felicity.  In 
vain  does  the  voice  of  inspiration  confirm  the  re- 
presentation of  daily  experience,  that  the  world  is 
a  scene  ever  varying  and  shifting,  where  principles, 
and  manners,  and  pleasures,  different,  and  often 
opposite,  dazzle,  and  interest  for  a  while,  and  then 
pass  away,  the  attention  of  their  votaries  being 
caught  by  the  novelty  or  splendour  of  those  that 
succeed.  Untaught  by  observation,  and  deaf  to  the 
unerring  dictates  of  that  word  which  proclaims 
that  the  fashion  of  this  world  passeth  away,  men 
continue  ensnared  by  its  delusive  principles,  bent 
solely  on  obtaining  its  uncertain  and  fleeting  plea- 
sures. 

Can  it  be  necessary,  when  the  solemn  knell  yet 
sounds  that  proclaimed  the  departure  of  the  past 
year,  with  the  varying  principles  and  events,  char- 
acters and  manners,  which  marked  its  fleeting  pro- 
gress— when,  enlivened  by  new  hopes,  and  cheered 
by  brighter  prospects,  we  shut  out  both  the  inquie- 
tudes and  pleasures  of  the  past  year,  and  welcome, 
in  that  which  is  to  come,  new  and  more  extensive 
schemes  of  aggrandisement,  d  more  uninterrupted 
and  exalted  flow  of  prosperity  and  happiness— in 
the  very  moment  when  we  hail  the  commencement 
of  another  fleeting  portion  of  time,  can  it  be  neces- 
sary for  me  to  prove  the  truth,  that  "  the  fashion  of 
this  world  passeth  away  T' 

All,  no  doubt,  will  concede  that  the  world  IkS 
changing  and  uncertain  in  its  principles  and  cus- 
toms;  that  its  enjoyments  are  fleeting  and  disap- 
pointing; that  many  of  the  events  and  labours  that 
interest  and  agitate  the  present  generation,  will  be 
forgotten  in  the  new  concerns  and  events  of  sue- 


AND  STABILITY  OF  GOD's  WORD.  35 

ceeding  ages.     So   far  all  will  allow  that  "  the 
fashion  of  this  world  passeth  away." 

It  is,  however,  my  design  to  consider  the  assertion 
of  the  apostle  as  extended  to  subjects  in  which  it 
is  deemed  that  certain  and  immutable  principles 
may  be  attained  by  the  light  of  reason,  and  which 
an  infidel  and  licentious  spirit  opposes  to  revelation, 
to  that  "  word  of  God  which"  only  "  abideth  for 
ever." 

From  the  uncertainty  stamped  on  the  "  fashion 
of  this  world,"  we  are  called  to  exempt  the  disco- 
veries of  reason  in  regard  to  the  human  mind,  and 
which,  it  is  said,  without  the  aid  of  revelation, 
establish  the  obligations  and  duties  of  man. 

But  have  the  nature  and  powers  of  the  human 
mind  been  analyzed  with  certainty  I  So  far  from 
this,  reason,  left  to  itself,  has  maintained  that  a 
thinking  principle  could  not  exist  independently  of 
body ;  and  supposed  the  soul  to  be  but  a  nice 
organization  of  the  more  refined  particles  of  matter. 
It  is  revelation  which  redeems  the  noblest  part  of 
man  from  that  destruction  to  which  matter,  frail 
and  perishing,  is  subjected,  and  restores  the  soul 
to  its  true  dignity,  as  an  emanation  from  the  ever- 
blessed  God,  spiritual  and  eternal,  as  its  adorable 
Author. 

Are  the  discoveries  of  reason  in  regard  to  the  hu- 
man mind  fixed  and  certain'?  So  far  from  this,  you 
find  philosophers  maintaining  opposite  and  contra- 
dictory opinions  on  the  important  and  fundamental 
question  of  the  freedom  of  the  will  in  its  operations. 
It  is  revelation  only  which  rescues  man  from  those 
false  theories  which  would  make  him  a  mere  ma- 
chine, irresistibly  set  in  motion,  necessarily  deter- 
mined in  its  choice  by  external  impulses.     It  is 


36  INSTABILITY  OF  HUMAN  REASONINGS, 

revelation  which,  establishing  the  accountableness 
of  man  to  God  his  Maker,  the  rewarder  of  the 
good  and  punisher  of  the  wicked,  establishes  on 
this  eternal  basis  his  free  agency. 

Nor  hath  human  reason  succeeded  in  estab- 
lishing the  point,  of  all  others  most  important,  the 
foundation  of  the  obligations  of  man  to  virtue  and 
duty. 

Various  and  changing  theories  make  the  obliga- 
tion of  virtue  to  arise  from  the  nature  and  fitness 
of  things,  from  its  intrinsic  worth  and  beauty,  or 
from  its  tendency  to  promote  public  and  private 
happiness.  It  is  revelation  only  which,  proclaiming 
Gnd  as  the  supreme  Lawgiver,  the  eternal  source 
of  rectitude,  the  almighty  Judge,  infinite  in  power 
to  reward  and  to  punish — it  is  revelation  only  which 
thus  establishes  the  obligation  to  virtue  on  the 
eternal  and  immutable  foundation  of  the  will  of 
God. 

Discard  then,  my  brethren,  the  claims  so  often 
asserted  of  human  reason  to  certainty  on  these 
momentous  subjects.  Many  have  there  been  who, 
trusting  to  her  illusive  lights,  have  been  led  through 
the  perplexing  mazes  of  subtle  and  refined  argu- 
ment, till,  wearied  with  the  fruitless  search  after 
truth,  they  fled  in  despair  to  the  deadly  gloom  of 
scepticism.  In  every  subject  which  relates  to  your 
nature  as  intelligent  and  accountable  creatures, 
take  for  the  guide  and  standard  of  your  belief  the 
unerring  declarations  of  the  word  of  God.  Theo- 
ries founded  on  the  deductions  of  unassisted  reason, 
like  "  the  fashion  of  this  world,"  pass  away,  but 
the  word  of  God,  luminous  and  certain  as  its  divine 
Author,  abideth  for  ever. 

The  claims  of  reason,  in  regard  to  what  is  called 


AND  STABILITY  OF  GOd's  WORD.  37 

natural  religion,  are  also  like  the  "  fashion  of  the 

world  which  passeth  away." 

Reason,  say  the  enemies  of  revelation,  is  com- 
petent to  discover  all  the  truths  which  it  is  neces- 
sary for  man  to  know  concerning  a  supreme  Being 
and  a  future  state.  But  is  reason  able  to  ascertain 
the  nature  and  essence  of  matter  with  which  we 
are  daily  conversant,  and  which  is  the  object  of 
our  senses'!  And  can  her  unassisted  powers  dis- 
cover the  transcendent  truth  of  the  being  of  a  God, 
infinitely  removed  from  matter,  uncreated,  spiritual, 
and  eternal  ?  Where  is  to  be  found  this  system  of 
natural  religion  so  much  extolled,  which  would 
usurp  the  place  and  authority  of  the  revealed  will- 
of  God  i  Shall  we  search  for  it  among  the  wisest 
arid  best  of  the  sages  of  antiquity!  With  them, 
as  reason  was  advanced  to  her  highest  polish  and 
strength,  we  ought  to  expect,  if  any  where,  to  see 
delineated  and  established  this  boasted  system. 
Alas!  these  enlightened  sages  arrived  at  no  more 
certainty  concerning  God  and  his  perfections,  than 
the  ignorant  savage  that  prowls  the  wilderness. 
The  father  of  the  ancient  philosophy,  (Aristotle) 
in  whom  the  native  powers  of  the  mind  attained  a 
degree  of  strength  and  perfection  that  has  scarcely 
been  rivalled,  so  far  from  ascertaining  the  divine 
nature  and  perfections,  ascribed  to  gross  and  per- 
ishing matter  the  properties  of  divinity,  and  main- 
tained that  the  world  was  eternal.  And  this  opinion, 
which  destroys  the  omnipotence,  and  renders  un- 
necessary even  the  existence  of  a  God,  was  held 
by  almost  all  the  ancient  sects.  The  distinguished 
Roman  orator  (Cicero)  embraced  the  same  gross 
and  absurd  opinion  of  the  eternity  of  matter,  main- 
tainiag  that  a  pure  mind,  thinking,  intelligent,  and 


38  INSTABILITY  OF  HUMAN  REASONINGS, 

disconnected  with  matter,  was  altogether  incon- 
ceivable. Those  doctrines,  without  which  religion 
is  a  mere  illusion,  the  immortality  of  a  soul  and  a 
future  existence,  were  doubted  by  the  wisest  of  the 
ancient  philosophers.  He  who  was  the  pride  of 
Rome  for  his  genius  and  eloquence,  (Cicero)  re- 
mained in  doubt,  even  after  having  perused  a  cele- 
brated treatise  (of  Plato)  on  the  immortality  of  the 
soul.  "  While  I  read  him,"  says  he,  "  I  am  con- 
vinced ;  when  I  lay  the  book  aside,  and  begin  to 
consider  by  myself  of  the  soul's  immortality,  all 
the  conviction  instantly  ceases."  The  doubt  on 
this  interesting  subject,  that  casts  a  gloom  over  the 
last  moments  of  another  virtuous  heathen,  (Socrates) 
has  often  been  mentioned.  In  the  awful  moment 
when  he  stood  on  the  brink  of  eternity,  what  was 
the  light  and  support  which  natural  religion  afforded 
him  1  We  hear  from  him  no  acknowledgment  of 
the  true  God  and  his  perfections,  no  adoration  of 
his  power  and  holiness,  no  trust  in  his  goodness 
and  mercy.  The  performance  of  a  vow  to  a  hea- 
then deity  was  the  subject  which  occupied  his  last 
thoughts.  Instead  of  commending  his  soul  into 
the  hands  of  Him  who  made  it,  as  he  would  have 
done,  had  he  known  the  true  God,  the  Author  of  his 
being,  he  breathes  his  last  accents  in  the  earnest 
injunction  to  his  followers,  to  see  that  his  frivolous 
and  idolatrous  vow  was  performed — ("  We  owe  a 
cock  to  Esculapius,  forget  not  to  pay  the  vow.") 
Oh!  feeble  the  light  of  unassisted  reason,  which 
rescued  not  her  wisest  and  best  votaries  from  the 
most  absurd  and  extravagant  idolatry.  The  system 
of  religion  formed  by  thy  efforts  only,  is  "  the 
fashion  of  this  world  that  passeth  away." 
My  brethren,  when  we  find  the  most  enlightened 


AND  STABILITY  OF  GOD's  WORD.  S9 

of  the  heathen  philosophers  enveloped  in  ignorance, 
uncertain   as  to  the   truths  of  religion,  need  we 
wonder  that  the  great  mass  of  the  Gentile  world 
were  not  led,  from  the  contemplation  of  the  works 
of  God,  to  know  and  adore  their  almighty  Author? 
Need  we  be  surprised  at  beholding  the  Gentile 
nations  prostrate  in  adoration  before  the  orbs  that 
shine  in  the  firmament,  faint  images  of  the  Crea- 
tor's glory  1  or  trembling  with  superstitious  homage 
before  the  vilest  reptile  that  crawls  on  the  earth  1 
Let  us  no  longer  hear  then  of  the  ability  of  unas- 
sisted reason  to  discover  and  ascertain  the  necessary 
truths  of  religion.     They  were  made  known  at  the 
first  by  God  himself,  and  spread  through  all  nations 
by  tradition.   Reason  is  competent  to  illustrate  and 
confirm  them  ;   and  yet,  alas !   she  disgraced  and 
obscured  them  by  the  grossest  superstitions.    The 
world  was  never  destitute  of  a  revelation  of  God's 
will ;  natural  religion,  therefore,  a  religion  disco- 
vered  and   established  by  human   reason   solely, 
never  has  existed.    Some  of  the  truths  of  revelation 
— as,  for  example,  the  being,  and  perfections,  and 
providence,  of  the  one  supreme  God,  and  the  im- 
mortality of  the  soul — reason  can  go  further  in  ex- 
plaining and  confirming;  than  she  can  those  doc- 
trines connected  with  the  Trinity  of  persons  in  the 
Godhead,  and  man's  redemption  by  the  blood  of 
the  Son  of  God.   But  the  former  were  made  known 
by   original  revelation — reason   did   not   discover 
them.    It  is  impossible  to  prove  that,  left  to  herself, 
she  ever  could  have  discovered  them,  had  they  not 
been  made  known. 

Cause  then  have  we  to  bless  God,  that,  on  sub- 
jects so  essential  to  our  perfection  and  happiness 
as  the  knowledge  of  his  nature  and  will,  and  our 


40  INSTABILITY  OF  HUfllAN  REASONINGS, 

eternal  destiny ;  we  have  an  authority  on  which  to 
rest,  more  certain  and  stable  than  the  discoveries 
of  reason,  which,  like  "  the  fashion  of  this  world, 
passeth  away."  God  communicated  his  adorable 
name  and  will  to  our  first  parents.  This  knowledge, 
obscured  by  the  fall,  he  in  part  renewed  to  the 
patriarchs,  and  more  fully  declared  in  his  law  and 
covenant  with  the  Jewish  nation.  But,  in  his  un- 
searchable counsels,  he  reserved  its  glorious  and 
perfect  consummation  for  the  last  revelation  of  his 
will  by  Jesus  Christ.  In  the  blessed  Gospel  of  his 
Son  is  contained  a  discovery  of  the  divine  perfec- 
tions and  will,  of  the  way  of  salvation,  and  of  our 
eternal  existence,  to  which  reason  never  could  haVe 
attained,  but  which  is  perfectly  agreeable  to  her 
clearest  and  most  enlightened  dictates.  This  Gos- 
pel rests  on  the  luminous  and  conclusive  evidence  of 
miracles  and  prophecy.  The  sufferings  and  death 
of  those  who  first  proclaimed  it,  attested  its  super- 
natural facts,  involving  the  truth  of  its  holy,  and 
salutary,  and  exalting  doctrines.  Its  rapid  spread 
through  the  world,  though  opposed  by  the  bigotry 
of  the  Jews  and  the  learning  and  power  of  the 
Gentile  world,  proved  that  the  arm  which  sustained 
it  is  divine.  So  valuable  then  to  us,  as  it  respects 
the  order,  the  peace,  the  purity  of  the  present  life ; 
so  indispensible,  as  it  respects  the  destinies  of  the 
life  to  come ;  let  us  hold  fast  to  this  blessed  Gospel, 
resisting  the  assaults  of  the  vain  wisdom  of  this 
world,  which  would  wrest  us  from  this  sure  anchor 
of  all  our  hopes,  and  cast  us  on  the  troubled  ocean 
of  doubt,  and  gloom,  and  despair. 

There  yet  lives  in  the  recollection  of  the  present 
generation,  the  awful  example  of  the  impiety  and 
crimes  into  which  men  will  plunge,  v/hen  forsaking 


AND  STABILITY  OF  GOD's  WORD.  4^ 

th€  unerring  light  of  revelation,  they  take  for  their 
guide  the  illusive  dictates  of  reason,  and  the  corrupt 
impulses  of  their  passions.     A  fearful  war   was 
waged,  of  atheism,  irreligion,  and  licentiousness, 
against  religion,  virtue,  and  social  order.     The  din 
of  the  conflict  still  sounds  in  our  ears — the  traces 
of  its  ravages  are  not  yet  obliterated  in  the  nation 
which  it  desolated.    The  spirit  of  enmity  to  religion 
and  to  social  order  that  kindled  this  conflict  and 
so  long  fed  its  flames,  exerts  among  us  the  deadly 
purpose  of  exterminating  our  holy  religion,  that 
licentiousness  may  have  no  control  on  its  corrupt 
and  desolating  reign.     Let  us  cling  with  renewed 
steadfastness  to  that  pure,  enlightening,  and  con- 
soling system  of  religion  revealed  in  the  word  of 
God,   which  will  secure    us  from   the  corrupting 
principles  of  that  world,   "  the  fashion  of  which 
passeth  away,"  and  conduct  us  to  everlasting  per- 
fection and  bliss  in  the  future  existence  which  it 
leveals. 

Unchanging  and  substantial  happiness  is  not  to 
he  found  but  in  the  love  and  favour  of  the  ever- 
living  God,  the  means  of  obtaining  which  are  re- 
vealed in  the  Gospel  of  his  Son.  May  his  grace 
excite  you  from  the  heart  to  embrace,  and  strengthen 
you  to  hold  fast  his  divine  truths  and  promises. 
May  his  blessing,  that  maketh  truly  rich,  that  con- 
veys unfailing  and  sure  light  and  peace,  follow 
you  in  all  your  enjoyments  and  pursuits.  May  his 
merciful  providence  preserve  you,  to  come  before 
him  in  this  holy  temple,  on  many  returns  of  this 
day,  more  fervent  and  vigorous  in  your  love  and 
trust  in  him,  more  sincere  and  devoted  in  his 
service. 

May  he,  the  almighty  and  eternal  God,  be  your 
Vol.  hi.  6 


42         INSTABILITY  OF  HUMAN  REASONINGS,  &C. 

refuge  and  your  portion,  that  when  the  vain  wisdom 
of  this  world  passeth  away,  your  peace,  stayed  on 
him,  the  rock  of  ages,  may  endure  for  ever.  May 
he  be  your  Deliverer  and  Saviour,  that,  beyond  this 
transitory  and  perishing  world,  you  may  find  an 
inheritance  eternal,  undefiled,  and  that  fadeth  not 
away. 


SERMON  V, 


THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 


ECCLES.  ix.   11. 

I  returned,  and  saw  under  the  sun,  that  the  race  is  not  to  the  swift, 
nor  the  battle  to  the  strong,  neither  yet  bread  to  the  wise,  nor 
yet  riches  to  men  of  understanding,  nor  yet  favour  to  men  of  skill; 
but  time  and  chance  happeneth  to  them  all. 

The  universe  is  govunied  by  that  almighty  Being 
whose  power  called  it  into  existence.  That  it  owes 
its  origin  to  some  cause,  and  that  this  cause  must 
be  intelligent,  infinitely  powerful,  and  infinitely 
perfect,  is  a  strong  dictate  of  reason.  "  The  fool 
only  saith  in  his  heart,  there  is  no  God."* 

But  if  the  world  be  created  by  an  infinitely 
powerful  and  perfect  Being,  it  must  be  preserved 
and  governed  by  him.  The  same  intelligence  and 
power  which  produced  it,  will  be  necessary  to 
sustain  it.  The  infinite  perfection  of  the  Creator 
cannot  permit  him  to  be  a  passive  spectator  of  the 
work  of  his  hands,  nor  his  infinite  goodness  to 
leave  his  intelligent  creation  unprotected.  "  The 
Lord  he  is  God  in  heaven  above,  and  upon  the  earth 
beneath."!  "  He  is  the  Governor  among  the  na- 
tions."t 

Under  the  control  of  the  sovereign  Lord  of  hea- 
ven and  earth,  the  physical  and  moral  world  is 

*  Psalm  xiv.  1..  t  Deut.  iv.  39.  |  Psalm  xxii.  28. 


44        THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 

regulated  by  those  general  laws  which  he   hatb 
established.     From  the  use  of  certain  means,  a 
certain  result  generally  follows;   but  God,  by  his 
providence,  sometimes  interposes,  and  orders  mat- 
ters totally  contrary  to  human  calculation,  and  to 
the  ordinary  course  of  human  affairs.    The  second 
causes,  by  which  the  great  first  cause  governs  the 
world,  usually  operate  with  certainty  and  unifor- 
mity;   but  sometimes  the  general  effect  does  not 
follow;  means  the  most  likely  to  produce  an  end 
are  sometimes  ineffectually  employed,  and  the  end 
is  sometimes  produced  by  the  most  unlikely  means. 
Things  do  not  always  issue  according  to  the  general 
laws  by  which  God  governs  the  world.     This  is 
the  truth  declared  by  the  wise  man  in  the  text — 
"  I  returned,  and  saw  under  the  sun,  that  the  race 
is  not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strongs 
neither  yet  bread  to  the  wise,  nor  yet  riches  to  men 
of  understanding,  nor  yet  favour  to  men  of  skill ; 
but  time  and  chance  happeneth  to  them  all." 

Solomon  had  been  surveying  the  whole  compass 
of  nature,  "  from  the  cedar  of  Lebanon,  to  the 
hyssop  that  springeth  out  of  the  wall."*  "  He  gave^ 
his  heart  also  to  seek  and  to  search  out  by  wisdom 
concerning  all  things  that  are  done  under  heaven."! 
Thus  turning  his  thoughts  from  one  subject  to 
another,  he  contemplates  and  reproves,  in  the  verse 
preceding  the  text,  those  slothful  and  desponding 
persons  who,  on  account  of  the  uncertainty  of  hu- 
man affairs,  discontinued  the  use  of  those  means 
by  which,  ordinarily,  success  is  obtained.  Them 
he  exhorts  to  diligence,  to  do  with  all  their  might 
whatsoever  their  hand  findeth  to  do.     In  the  words 

*  1  Kings  iv.  33.  t  Eccles.  i.  13. 


THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT.  45 

of  the  text  he  then  goes  on,  "  I  returned" — he  turned 
his  view  to  a  contrary  extreme  in  the  conduct  of 
men,  perhaps  more  common — a  presumptuous  con- 
fidence in  their  own  wisdom  and  exertions,  as  if 
by  these,  independently  of  the  aid  and  blessing  of 
God,  success  were  to  be  obtained.  This  presump- 
tuous conduct  he  reproves,  by  declaring  that  he 
saw  under  the  sun,  in  the  course  of  human  affairs, 
events  do  not  always  take  place  according  to  the 
ordinary  operation  of  second  causes.  "  The  race 
is  not  to  the  swift" — he  who  is  the  swiftest  we 
should  expect  would  always,  according  to  the 
general  laws  of  nature,  win  the  race,  and  yet  some 
untoward  event  may  give  the  prize  to  an  inferior 
rival.  "  Nor  the  battle  to  the  strong" — victory  we 
should  suppose  would  attend  the  banners  of  the 
army  the  most  formidable  in  numbers  and  in 
strength,  and  yet  the  most  potent  army,  through 
some  unlucky  mischance,  has  been  compelled  to 
leave  the  field  to  a  contemned  adversary.  "  Nor 
yet  bread  to  the  wise,  nor  yet  riches  to  men  of  un- 
derstanding"— wisdom  and  understanding,  in  plan- 
ning and  executing  schemes  of  aggrandizement, 
are  the  established  means  of  success,  and  yet  we 
see  in  the  world  that  the  most  ingenious  and  acute 
in  vain  strive  to  attain  the  wealth  which  sometimes 
is  poured  into  the  lap  of  those  who  have  neither 
the  wisdom  judiciously  to  form  plans  of  obtaining 
it,  nor  the  understanding  prudently  to  execute 
them.  "  Nor  yet  favour  to  men  of  skill" — honour, 
in  general,  rewards  the  men  of  skill,  and  yet  we 
see  that  some  lucky  accident  sometimes  advances 
suddenly  to  distinction  those  who  have  not  the 
faintest  claims  to  it,  and  do  not  possess  talents 
that  merit  distinction.     "  Time  and  chance  hap- 


46        THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 

peneth  to  them  all" — that  is,  unexpected  events, 
contrary  to  the  usual  course  of  things,  frustrate 
the  exertions  of  the  swift,  the  strong,  the  wise,  the 
men  of  understanding,  the  men  of  skill,  and  give 
their  glory  to  others.  "  The  race  is  not  to  the  swift, 
nor  the  battle  to  the  strong,  nor  yet  bread  to  the 
wise,  nor  yet  riches  to  men  of  understanding,  nor 
yet  favour  to  men  of  skill ;  but  time  and  chance 
happeneth  to  them  all." 

Tilings  do  not  always  issue  according  to  the 
general  laws  by  which  God  governs  the  world. 
Unexpected  events  frustrate  the  regular  and  usual 
means  of  obtaining  success.  This  is  the  truth  con- 
tained in  the  text,  and  it  is  a  truth,  the  consideration 
of  which  is  peculiarly  suited  to  the  present  circum- 
stances in  which  we  are  placed.  Let  us  illustrate 
it  by  a  brief  survey  of  human  life,  and  then  let  us 
deduce  from  it  doctrinal  and  practical  reflections. 

Behold  this  truth  verified  in  the  public  events  of 
the  world,  and  in  the  private  life  of  individuals. 

Behold  it  verified  in  the  public  events  of  the 
world. 

Governments  have  vanished,  which,  reared  and 
supported  by  power  and  wealth,  promised,  accord- 
ing to  all  human  calculation,  lo  defy  the  ravages  of 
time  and  the  blasts  of  adverse  fortune.  The  tide 
on  which  they  had  been  borne  to  grandeur  and 
renown  suddenly  turned,  and  they  floated  rapidly 
back  into  the  gulf  of  oblivion.  Mighty  kingdoms 
have  disappeared ;  neither  the  talents  of  the  states- 
man, nor  the  efforts  of  the  patriot,  could  save  them ; 
and  to  the  places  of  grandeur  and  opulence  from 
which  they  had  fallen,  nations  have  been  advanced, 
whom  they  once  proudly  ranked  among  the  meanest 
of  their  vassals.     Legislators  have  framed  consti- 


THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT.  47 

tutions,  calculated,  as  they  hoped,  to  perpetuate  to 
the  latest  generations  the  freedom  and  prosperity, 
which  were  thus  consecrated  by  all  the  eftbrts  of 
genius,  of  talents,  and  of  knowledge.  And  yet  the 
fairest  fabrics  of  human  polity  have  not  lasted  even 
till  the  mouldering  hand  of  time  had  gradually 
loosened  their  foundations.  Suddenly  demolished 
by  the  violence  of  popular  phrenzy,  or  the  attacks 
of  despotic  power,  they  have  crushed  beneath  their 
ruins  that  freedom  which  human  wisdom  had  des- 
tined to  be  perpetual.  Who  does  not  see  in  these 
events,  so  contrary  to  the  ordinary  operation  of 
human  causes,  and  therefore  so  contrary  to  human 
calculation,  the  declaration  verified — that  "  the  race 
is  not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strong,  nor 
yet  favour  to  men  of  skill ;  but  time  and  chance 
happeneth  to  them  all  f ' 

In  those  conflicts  where  the  fate  of  nations  is 
decided  by  the  sword,  we  see  the  same  truth  ex- 
emplified. .Armies,  formidable  for  their  numbers, 
and  more  formidable  for  their  discipline,  have  some- 
times been  discomfited  by  inferior  forces,  and  lost 
the  fame  of  past  victories  in  present  disgrace  and 
defeat.  The  declarations  of  the  word  of  God  have 
been  verified — "  an  hundred  has  chased  a  thousand, 
and  a  thousand  has  put  ten  thousand  to  flight."* 
"  There  is  no  king  saved  by  the  multitude  of  an 
host ;  neither  is  a  mighty  man  delivered  by  much 
strength. "t  "  The  horse  is  prepared  against  the 
day  of  battle;  but  safety  is  of  the  Lord."|  "  The 
race  is  not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strong; 
but  time  and  chance  happeneth  to  them  all." 

Behold  this  truth  also  exemplified  in  the  issue  of 

*  Lev.  xxvi.  8.  f  Psalm  xxxiii.  16.  |  Prov.  xxi.  31. 


48        THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 

those  measures  which  are  not  only  wisely  planned, 
but  which  have  in  view  some  public  meritorious 
object.  These,  in  the  ordinary  course  of  God's 
righteous  providence,  we  should  expect  would  be 
successful,  but  even  these  are  not  exempt  from 
those  unforeseen  and  unexpected  issues  which 
frustrate  the  wisest  plans  and  the  most  meritorious 
designs.  Your  cause  may  be  that  of  truth,  of 
justice,  and  of  honour;  the  means  by  which  you 
seek  to  advance  it  may  be  formed  by  wisdom  and 
sanctioned  by  virtue  ;  you  may  employ  these  means 
with  courage,  with  resolution,  with  zeal,  and  with 
perseverance ;  and  yet  all  these,  though  they  de- 
serve, may  not  procure  success ;  knavery,  impu- 
dence, cunning,  and  perhaps  even  folly,  may  debar 
you  from  victory.  For  in  the  mysterious  course  of 
God's  providence,  "  the  race  is  not  to  the  swift,  nor 
the  battle  to  the  strong,  neither  yet  bread  to  the 
wise,  nor  yet  riches  to  men  of  understanding,  nor 
yet  favour  to  men  of  skill ;  but  time .  and  chance 
happeneth  to  them  all." 

But,  my  brethren,  there  are  examples  of  the  un- 
certain issue  of  all  human  plans  and  means,  which 
fall  more  directly  within  the  observation  of  each 
one  of  us,  and  come  more  immediately  home  to 
our  own  bosoms. 

Look  at  those  objects  which  are  generally  con- 
sidered the  sources  of  human  happiness,  and  see 
whether  the  regular  means  of  obtaining  them  are 
always  successful. 

The  usual  means  of  obtaining  wealth,  are  in- 
dustry and  frugality,  enterprise,  prudence,  zeal, 
and  perseverance,  and,  as  a  general  rule,  they  are 
successful;  but  still  bread  is  not  always  to  the 
wise,  nor  riches  to  men  of  understanding.    One 


THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 


49 


ttian,  from  an  early  period  of  his  life,  has  turned 
all  his  thoughts  and  studies  to  the  acquisition  of 
wealth ;  custom  has  fixed  him  in  those  habits 
favourable  to  its  acquisition;  he  rises  up  early  and 
sits  up  late,  and  eats  the  bread  of  carefulness ;  his 
enterprises  are  judiciously  formed  ;  they  are  pur- 
sued with  industry,  with  zeal,  and  with  persever- 
ance ;  nor  does  prodigality  curtail  his  means,  or 
dissipate  the  fruit  of  his  labours ;  and  yet  some- 
times we  see  men  of  this  description  fail  in  the 
object  of  their  pursuit;  while  some  more  fortunate 
individual,  with  less  judgment  and  less  exertion, 
finds  her  pouring  her  treasures  upon  him  from 
every  quarter.  So  frequent  are  such  instances, 
that  they  have  established  the  common  remark, 
that  some  men  succeed  in  all  their  enterprises, 
while  others  succeed  in  none. 

Look  at  fame  and  reputation — by  talents,  learn- 
ing, and  merit,  fame  and  reputation  are  usually 
acquired.  Often,  however,  we  see  them  attend 
boastful  pretensions,  obtrusive  confidence,  osten- 
tatious display.  The  bold,  the  meddling,  the  for- 
ward, often,  without  real  talents,  push  themselves 
into  consequence;  while  real  merit,  too  retiring 
to  be  ostentatious,  and  too  modest  to  be  bold  and 
presuming,  either  languishes  in  obscurity,  or  only 
imperfectly  obtains  the  estimation  and  fame  which 
is  its  due.  So  true  is  it,  that  "  favour  is  not  always 
to  men  of  skill." 

Turn  to  those  scenes  where  the  liveliest  feelings 
of  the  heart  are  awakened,  and  whence  arise  their 
purest  joys — the  scenes  of  domestic  life.  You  be- 
hold these  scenes  sometimes  furnished  with  every 
essential  constituent  of  happiness ;  you  behold  re- 
ligion consecrating,  by  her  celestial  presence,  the 

Vol.  III.  7 


oO  THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 

circle  of  domestic  enjoyment;  and  yet  events, 
which  wisdom  could  not  foresee,  nor  prudence 
avert,  nor  piety  ward  off,  suddenly  cloud  this  bliss- 
fiil  scene.  Misfortune,  sickness,  or  death,  ravages 
it,  and  leaves  no  traces  of  felicity  behind.  Alas ! 
'•  1 4'eturned,  and  saw  under  the  sun,  that  the  race  is 
not  to  the  swift,  nor  the  battle  to  the  strong,  neither 
yet  bread  to  the  wise,  nor  yet  riches  to  men  of 
understanding,  nor  yet  favour  to  men.  of  skill;  but 
time  and  chance  happeneth  to  them  all." 

Events,  not  according  to  the  ordinary  operation 
of  the  established  laws  of  nature,  and  therefore 
styled  accidents,  and  ascribed,  in  common  language, 
to  time  and  chance,  frustrate  the  best  concerted 
plans,  disappoint  the  strength  and  wisdom  of  man, 
and  impress  on  him  his  weakness  and  his  ignorance, 
his  dependence  on  a  power  over  which  he  has  no 
control. 

This  is  the  first  lesson  of  instruction  which  we 
deduce  from  the  doctrine  contained  in  the  text. 

The  varying  and  uncertain  issue  of  human  affairs 
should  lead  us  to  acknowledge  and  adore  the  pro- 
vidence of  God. 

He  who  doth  according  to  his  will  in  the  armies 
of  heaven,  and  among  the  inhabitants  of  the  earth; 
whose  hand  none  can  stay,  and  unto  whom  none 
can  say.  What  doest  thou  I — He  who  has  laid  and 
sustains  the  foundations  of  the  earth,  and  is  Gover- 
nor among  the  nations — He  who,  sitting  in  the 
heavens,  extends  his  power  over  the  universe,  re- 
gards and  regulates  also  the  most  minute  event*; 
for  he  "  commandeth  the  ravens,"*  he  "  feedeth 
the  fouls  of  the  air,"  "  without  him  not  even  a 

*  1  Kings  xvii.  4. 


THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SIVIFT.  51 

aparrow  falleth  to  the  ground,"  and  he  "  numbers 
even  the  hairs  of  our  head."*  The  world,  bearing 
such  evident  marks  of  order  and  design,  and  man 
the  noblest  work  that  adorns  it,  must  have  pro- 
ceeded from  some  intelligent  cause.  And  the  in- 
finitely perfect  Being  who  made  the  world,  can  alone 
preserve  it ;  he  alone  can  give  eifect  to  causes, 
and  certainty  and  uniformity  to  the  laws  of  nature. 
Chance  is  but  an  empty  name,  it  has  no  being,  it 
has  no  power ;  and  therefore  to  ascribe  to  chance 
the  universe  and  the  events  which  happen  in  it,  is 
as  absurd  as  it  is  impious.  To  ascribe  to  chance 
the  regulation  of  the  state  and  destiny  of  man,  is 
as  gloomy  and  cheerless  as  it  is  false.  Chance  is 
only  the  term  by  which,  in  the  common 'language 
of  men,  those  events  are  designated  which  happen 
differently  from  the  general  operation  of  the  laws 
by  which  God  governs  the  world.  But  these  un- 
expected and  singular  events,  so  far  from  being 
derogatory  to  his  providence,  are  a  powerful  con- 
firmation of  it.  Did  human  affairs  proceed  in  an 
unvarying  course,  the  uniformity  of  the  operations 
of  the  laws  of  nature  might  lead  us  to  forget  the 
arm  that  controls  and  guides  them :  but  when 
these  laws  are  interrupted,  and  when  events  happen 
differently  from  the  usual  course  of  afiairs,  and 
therefore  contrary  to  human  calculation,  our  atten- 
tion is  arrested,  we  behold  a  striking  display  of 
almighty  power  changing  or  controlling  the  course 
of  events;  fear  should  fall  upon  us;  reverence  of 
this  almighty  power,  thus  bafHing  human  strength, 
should  fill  our  souls ;  they  should  be  lifted  up  in 
adoration  of  the  Most  High  God,  in  whose  hand 

t  Matt.  X.  29,  30. 


52  THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 

are  power  and  might;  we  should  acknowledge  that 
it  is  his  inscrutable  providence  which  takes  th6 
"  race  from  the  swift,  and  the  battle  from  the 
strong,"  and  which  allots  "  time  and  chance  to  all." 

And  hence,  also,  we  learn  a  lesson  of  depen- 
dence. 

If  the  events  of  things  were  not  usually  according 
to  known  and  established  laws,  if  the  use  of  means 
did  not  generally  eventuate  in  the  attainment  af 
the  end,  enterprise  would  be  discouraged,  industry 
would  relax  her  efforts,  and  the  business  of  the 
world  would  be  at  a  stand.  But,  on  the  contrary, 
lest  men,  perceiving  the  uniform  success  of  their 
plans  and  efforts,  should  forget  him,  of  whom  are 
all  mun's*  goings  ;  lest,  perceiving  the  end,  always 
following  the  means  employed  by  them,  they  should 
grow  insolent  and  haughty,  and  say  it  was  their 
"  own  power  and  the  might  of  their  own  hand  that 
got  them  this  wealth,"*  and  "  forget  the  Lord  their 
Maker,"  it  pleases  God  sometimes  to  change  the 
ordinary  operations  of  causes. 

"  Let  not  then  the  wise  man  glory  in  his  wisdom ; 
let  not  the  rich  man  glory  in  his  riches ;  neither 
let  the  mighty  man  glory  in  his  might."t  Riches, 
wisdom,  and  might  are  often  defeated  and  made 
to  vanish  before  the  breath  of  the  Most  High.  All 
that  we  call  natural  causes  are  the  instruments  of 
his  pleasure,  and  he  applies  them  all  to  the  purposes 
of  his  will.  What  a  powerful  motive  then  have  we 
to  serve  him,  who  can  raise  up  or  bring  low,  who 
can  save  or  who  can  destroy,  who  can  prosper  or 
defeat  all  our  plans !  What  a  powerful  motive 
then  have  we  to  fear  him,  who  can  make  natural 

*  Deut.  8.  17.  t  Jer.  ix.  33. 


THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT.  53 

causes  the  instruments  of  his  displeasure!  He 
holds  in  his  hand  the  fire  and  the  famine,  the  sword 
and  the  pesiilence,  the  storm  and  the  earthquake. 
And  he  can  make  "  the  heavens  over  our  heads 
brass,  and  the  earth  under  our  feet  iron,"*  and 
the  very  beasts  of  the  field  to  rise  up  against  us. 
Him,  therefore,  let  us  fear ;  let  us  ascribe  to  him 
whatever  gifts  of  fortune,  of  talent,  or  of  honour, 
distinguish  us,  and  be  humble ;  using  these  gifts  as 
his  stewards,  and  so  employing  them,  that  we  may 
render  our  account  to  him  with  joy.  Let  us  look 
to  him  to  bless  and  prosper  all  our  plans  and  all 
our  efforts.  When  ihey  are  successful,  let  us  give 
to  him  the  glory,  and  praise  him;  when  they  fail, 
let  us  adore  him  who  chastens  and  afflicts  us  for 
our  good,  and  turn  from  our  sins  by  repentance. 
Yes,  my  brethren,  repentance  is  the  lesson  which 
his  judgments,  which  are  now  abroad  in  the  earth, 
which  have  visited  our  land,  should  teach  us.f  Re- 
pentance, bringing  forth  the  fruits  of  righteousness, 
is  the  lesson  impressed  on  us  by  the  services  of  this 
day. 

It  is  a  truth,  certain  as  the  holinpss  and  justice 
of  God,  that  though,  in  the  present  world,  there  is 
one  lot  to  the  righteous  and  to  the  wicked — "  time 
and  chance  happen  to  all" — yet  a  day  is  coming, 
when  God  will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness; 
when  he  will  make  an  eternal  separation  between 
the  righteous  and  the  wicked,  between  him  who 
serveth  God  and  him  who  serveth  him  not;  when 
to  the  former  he  will  award  glory,  and  honour,  and 
immortality,  and  punish  the  latter  with  everlastino- 
destruction  from  his  presence. 

*  Deut.  :!ixviii.  23.  t  Preached  during  the  war  of  1812.. 


54        THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT. 

Finally.  From  the  doctrine  contained  in  the  text> 
that  unexpected  accidents  frustrate  the  regular  and 
usual  means  of  obtaining  success,  we  deduce  the 
uncertainty  of  all  human  enjoyments;  and  hence 
we  learn  the  wisdom  of  pursuing  those  spiritual 
joys  which  are  beyond  the  reach  of  accident  and 
misfortune.  All  worldly  means  may  fail  us;  we 
cannot,  therefore,  be  sure  of  obtaining  worldly  joys. 
Even  when  attained,  all  human  efforts  to  preserve 
them  may  prove  ineffectual.  Are  then  all  the  pur- 
suits of  man  liable  to  uncertainty?  and  are  all  his 
joys  thus  insecure  1  No — those  pursuits  which  pro- 
mote the  perfection  of  our  being,  those  joys  which 
arise  from  the  favour  of  our  God,  are  not  exposed 
to  "  time  and  chance."  In  regard  to  these,  it  is  a 
law  pronounced  by  God,  and  unchanging  in  its 
operation — "  Ask,  and  ye  shall  receive ;  seek,  and 
ye  shall  find;  knock,  and  it  shall  be  opened."*  To 
the  guilty  sons  of  men  it  was  pronounced  by  their 
Saviour  himself,  as  an  unchangeable  promise — 
"  Him  that  cometh  unto  me,  I  will  in  no  wise  cast 
out."t 

Here  then,  man,  tossed  on  the  uncertain  waves 
of  this  troublesome  world,  thou  shalt  find  rest.  The 
mercy  of  thy  Saviour,  the  favour  of  God,  the  glories 
of  heaven,  these  afford  joys  that  last  for  ever;  the 
means  of  attaining  these  are  certain  and  effectual. 
Seek  ye  then  the  Lord  now,  for  he  can  now  be 
found  ;  call  ye  upon  him  noic,  for  he  is  now  near; 
to-morrow  he  may  swear  in  his  wrath  that  ye  shall 
not  enter  into  his  rest.  Turn  then  from  your  sins 
by  repentance,  live  in  the  fear  and  service  of  him 
who  rules  in  heaven  and  in  earth ;  and  then  you 

*Matt.vii.7.  tJohnvi.37. 


THE  RACE  NOT  TO  THE  SWIFT.        55 

need  not  fear,  though  the  earth  be  removed,  and 
though  the  mountains  be  cast  into  the  midst  of  the 
sea ;  for  the  Lord  God  omnipotent  reigneth,  and 
he  hath  promised  to  be  the  strength  of  his  people, 
and  their  portion  for  ever. 

Yes,  Christians !  the  means  of  attaining  the  prize 
of  glory,  through  the  mercy  of  God,  are  in  your 
hands ;  faithfully  use  them,  and  success  is  certain. 
Here  the  race  is  to  the  swift,  and  the  battle  to  the 
strong.  In  proportion  to  your  efforts  in  the  Chris- 
tian life,  will  be  your  piogiess  here,  and  your 
felicity  hereafter.  Wait  then  upon  God  your  Sa- 
viour, and  ye  shall  renew  your  strength.  Wait 
upon  him  especially  in  that  ordinance  where  he 
offers  his  body  and  his  blood  to  be  the  spiritual 
nourishment  and  strength  of  his  people.  Ah !  what 
prospect  of  attaining  the  prize  of  glory  can  they 
have,  who  refuse  that  divine  strength  which  alone 
can  ensure  them  victory  1  O  Christians !  your 
Saviour  at  his  holy  table  now  offers  you  spiritual 
strength,  pardon,  peace,  immortality.*  Go,  peni- 
tent, believing  and  obedient,  and  you  shall  receive 
a  title  to  a  felicity,  which,  exalted  infinitely  above 
the  attacks  of  that  time  and  chance  to  which  all 
sublunary  joys  are  exposed,  will  flourish  for  ever 
in  the  presence  of  him  who  is  the  hope  of  his 
people,  the  Saviour  of  all  them  that  believe. 

*  Preached  on  occasion  of  administering  the  holy  communioii. 


SERMON  Vi. 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEON. 


Luke  ii.  25. 


And  behold,  there  was  a  man  in  Jerusalem,  whose  name  was 
Simeon  ;  and  the  same  man  was  just  and  devout,  waiting  for  the 
consolation  of  Israel:  and  the  Holy  Ghost  was  upon  him. 

This  was  that  venerable  saint  of  Israel,  who, 
blessed  with  the  view  of  the  new-born  Messiah, 
considering  the  summit  of  his  earthly  hopes  as 
attained,  poured  forth  the  ardent  prayer — "  Lord, 
now  lettest  thou  thy  servant  depart  in  peace,  for 
mine  eyes  have  seen  thy  salvation."*  And  from  the 
character  given  of  him  in  my  text,  we  may  pro- 
nounce that  he  was  not  unworthy  of  the  distin- 
guished honour  of  being  one  of  the  first  to  welcome 
the  glorious  Saviour  of  the  world. 

It  is  one  of  the  admirable  excellencies  of  the 
sacred  writings,  that  they  enforce  the  lessons  of 
piety  and  virtue,  not  only  by  the  most  luminous 
and  impressive  precepts,  but  by  the  still  more  in- 
teresting force  of  splendid  and  illustrious  examples. 
When  we  attentively  contemplate  those  holy  men 
who  were  admitted  to  intimate  intercourse  with 
Jehovah,  and  were  the  depositories  of  his  will  and 
the  subjects  of  his  distinguished  favour,  we  are 
strongly  excited  to  emulate  those  virtues  which  their 
character  and  lives  inculcate,  and  by  which  they 
rose  thus  high  in  the  favour  of  heaven. 

*Lukeii.29,30. 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEON.  57 

Let  us  now,  then,  seriously  consider  the  character 
of  him  who  is  presented  to  us  in  my  text;  and 
when  we  contemplate  his  virtues  as  delineated  by 
the  evangelist,  let  us  be  excited  to  imitate  them,  by 
the  inspiring  confidence,  that  with  him  we  shall 
then  see  the  salvation  of  God. 

"  There  was  a  man  in  Jerusalem,  whose  name 
was  Simeon  ;  the  same  man  was  just.'''' 

His  whole  conduct  was  regulated  by  the  precepts 
of  the  divine  law ;  and  the  blameless  tenor  of  his 
life  was  marked  by  no  actions  that  wounded  the 
feelings,  destroyed  the  peace,  or  injured  the  pro- 
perty of  others.  That  sacred  rule  which  reason 
has  written  on  the  hearts  of  all  men,  and  which 
the  Gospel  has  published  with  divine  sanctions,  of 
"  doing  to  others  as  we  would  they  should  do  unto 
us,"*  was  the  rule  by  which  Simeon  regulated  his 
conduct.  It  led  him  to  cultivate  not  only  the 
virtues  of  integrity  and  uprightness,  but  those  active 
virtues  of  benevolence  and  kindness  which  are  the 
perfection  of  the  exalted  virtue  of  justice.  "  He  did 
justly,  he  loved  mercy,  as  well  as  walked  humbly 
with  his  God."f  Preserving  a  conscience  void  of 
offence  towards  God  as  well  towards  man,  walking 
in  all  the  commandments  and  ordinances  of  the 
Lord  blameless,  he  merited  and  obtained  the  char- 
acter of  a  just  or  righteous  man. 

Brethren,  unless  the  unbiassed  testimony  of  our 
hearts  authorize  us,  after  the  faithful  examination 
of  our  lives,  to  cherish  the  humble  conviction,  that, 
through  the  grace  of  God,  we  regulate  our  conduct 
by  the  precepts  of  the  divine  law;  unless  we  can 

*  Luke  vi.  31.  t  Micah  vi.  8. 

Vol.  m.  8 


58  THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEON. 

assert  the  humble  claim,  that,  as  far  as  human 
frailty  will  permit,  we  are  just  and  righteous,  all 
our  pretensions  to  religion  are  empty  and  vain. 
He  who  impiously  presumes  that  the  warmest  pro^ 
fessions  of  zeal  for  the  glory  of  God,  and  the  most 
punctual  and  regular  discharge  of  all  the  public 
duties  of  religion,  will  atone  for  any  acts  of  injus- 
tice or  dishonesty,  for  any  violation  of  those  moral 
virtues  that  constitute  the  ornament,  the  perfection, 
and  the  happiness  of  our  nature,  however  he  may 
flatter  his  own  heart,  is  obnoxious  to  the  wrath  of 
that  almighty  Being  who  cannot  be  deceived,  and 
who  has  required,  as  the  only  infallible  evidence 
of  our  love  for  him,  that  we  keep  all  his  command- 
ments. The  dissembling  hypocrite  may  hope,  by 
zealous  professions  of  religion,  and  by  external  acts 
of  homage  to  God,  to  conceal,  or  to  carry  more 
securely  into  efiect,  the  purposes  of  injustice  or 
licentiousness :  but  on  him  will  certainly  be  ex- 
ecuted the  wo  denounced  against  the  Pharisees  of 
old — "  Wo  unto  you,  scribes  and  Pharisees,  hypo- 
crites !  who  cleanse  the  outside  of  the  cup  and 
platter,  but  within  are  full  of  extortion  and  ex- 
cess."* "  Ye  serpents,  ye  generation  of  vipers,  how 
can  yo  escape  the  damnation  of  hell  ?"t 

But  while  Simeon  was  careful  to  cherish  all  the 
moral  viruies,  he  was  not  unmindful  that  they 
could  be  rendered  acceptable  to  God  only  when 
sanctified  by  the  divine  principle  of  piety  and  de- 
votion ;  while  he  was  sedulous  and  faithful  in  the 
discharge  of  all  those  duties  which  his  fellow-men 
could  claim  from  him,  he  felt  the  full  force  of  those 
sacred  obligations  that  bound  him  to  the  greatest 
and  best  of  Beings,  his  Maker  and  his  God. 

*  Matt,  xxiii.  25.  t  Matt,  xxiii.  33. 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEOxX.  59 

Simeon  was  not  only  just,  he  was  "■  devout." 
It  is  one  of  those  striking  and  unaccountable 
inconsistencies  that  disgrace  the  character  and 
conduct  of  man,  that  while  he  always  stamps  with 
merited  disgrace  the  violation  of  those  duties  which 
he  owes  to  his  fellow-men,  he  himself  habitually 
violates,  and,  unconcerned,  views  others  violate, 
those  exalted  duties  which  are  due  to  the  almighty 
Maker  and  Governor  of  the  world.  He  is  ever  ready 
to  acknowledge,  that  the  tribute  of  praise  is  to  be 
rendered  to  human  excellence,  and  to  acknowledge 
the  lively  sense  of  the  obligations  to  an  earthly 
benefactor.  He  brands  with  infamy  the  apathy  that, 
unmoved,  beholds  illustrious  virtue — that  ingrati- 
tude which  spurns  the  hand  that  bestowed  distin- 
guished benefits.  And  yet,  (strange  inconsiste-ncy 
of  human  nature  I)  man,  without  any  concern,  for- 
gets his  sense  of  obligation  to  Him,  in  whom  he 
lives,  and  moves,  and  has  his  being ;  he  shrinks 
not  from  the  base  ingratitude  which  he  incurs,  by 
remaining  unmindful  of  that  heavenly  Benefactor 
from  whom  cometh  every  good  and  perfect  gift ; 
he  does  not  indignantly  shun  that  criminal  apathy 
which  discerns  not,  nor  adores  thy  excellence  and 
glory,  O  Jehovah,  from  whom  emanates  every  ex- 
cellence which  adorns  thy  creatures. 

Not  so  the  holy  saint  whose  character  we  are 
contemplating.  "Just"  to  his  fellow-men,  Simeon 
was  also  "  devout"  to  his  God.  The  contemplation 
of  the  excellence  and  goodness  of  the  Maker  of  the 
universe  warmed  his  soul,  and  drew  forth  the  lively 
tribute  of  adoration  and  praise.  The  profound 
sense  of  his  weakness  and  guilt  often  prostrated 
him  in  earnest  confession  and  sujjplication  before 
the  throne  of  his  almighty  Benefactor  and  sovereign 


60  THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEON. 

Judge.  From  the  view  of  the  infinite  perfections 
of  that  glorious  Being  who  bestowed  on  him  the 
countless  blessings  of  life,  the  flame  of  pious  grati- 
tude was  kindled  and  burnt  with  steady  and  in- 
creasing brightness. 

Be  it  our  aim,  my  brethren,  at  once  to  admire 
and  to  imitate  the  devout  Simeon.     Let  piety  to 
God  enkindle,  cherish,  and  exalt  every  moral  virtue ; 
be  this  the  sacred  spring  whence  shall  flow  all  the 
graces  and  virtues  that  adorn  our  lives.     Contem- 
plating with   holy  admiration    and   gratitude   the 
goodness  and  glory  of  him  who  sits  on  the  throne 
of  the  universe,  let  us  worship  and  fall  down,  let 
us  kneel  before  the  Lord  our  Maker.     Be  the  ex- 
ercises of  devotion  our  habitual  employment  and 
the  source  of  our  highest  pleasures.     Let  us  glory 
in  the  inestimable  privilege  of  being  permitted  to 
lay  our  wants  before  the  throne  of  our  almighty 
Benefactor,  to  repose  our  cares  and  sorrows  on 
the   bosom  of  our  heavenly  Parent,  and  to  hold 
communion  with  the  gracious  Father  of  our  spirits. 
Let  every  morning  renewing  his  goodness,  awaken 
in  our  hearts  the  song  of  praise  ;  let  every  evening, 
still  witnessing  his  unfailing  mercy,  find  us  still 
prostrate  at   his  throne.     Daily  transgressing  his 
commands,  yet  daily  sustained  by  his  bounty,  daily 
let  us  implore  his  mercy  and  invoke  his  care.     In 
the  temples  sacred  to  his  honour,  where  his  mercy- 
seat  is  unfolded  to  the  children  of  men,  let  us  ever 
be  found  humble  and  penitent  worshippers ;  there 
let  us  devoutly  mingle  in  the  fervent  confessions, 
prayers,   and   praises,  that  ascend  to  his  throne ; 
there   let  us,  with   penitent  and   obedient  hearts, 
receive  the  joyful  messages  of  reconciliation  ;  and 
above  ail,  there  let  us  with  grateful  and  holy  emo- 


THE  CHARACTER  OP  SIMEON.  61 

tions  surround  the  altar,  to  feast  on  that  bread 
which  Cometh  down  from  heaven,  and  to  wash 
away  our  sins  in  the  purifying  blood  of  the  divine 
Redeemer. 

Blessed  is  our  destiny,  if  these  exalted  exercises 
are  here  our  habitual  employment  and  delight;  the 
feeble  and  imperfect  devotions  of  earth  shall  ter- 
minate in  the  pure  and  rapturous  worship  of  heaven ; 
the  strains  of  time  shall  be  exchanged  for  the 
songs  of  eternity ;  through  the  courts  of  the  earthly 
sanctuary  we  shall  pass  into  that  celestial  temple 
where,  with  the  holy  saint  whose  devotion  we  have 
imitated,  and  with  the  spirits  of  the  just  made  per- 
fect, we  shall  see  the  salvation  of  God,  and  rejoice 
evermore  in  the  everlasting  consolation  of  Israel. 

It  was  this  "  consolation  of  Israel"  for  whom,  we 
are  told  in  my  text,  Simeon  "  waited." 

He  was  "  just  and  devout,  waiting  for  the  conso- 
lation of  Israel." 

With  the  liveliest  solicitude  must  the  holy  men 
among  the  nation  of  the  Jews  have  anticipated 
those  blessed  days  when  he,  who  was  emphatically 
styled  the  "  consolation  of  Israel,"  should  appear 
among  his  people  as  their  God  and  Saviour.  The 
early  promises  of  Jehovah  given  in  mercy  to  the 
first  parents  of  our  race  and  their  descendants,  had 
lighted  up  the  expectation,  and  succeeding  pro- 
phets had,  with  luminous  and  increasing  sublimity 
and  clearness,  portrayed  the  divine  character  and 
benignant  offices  of  that  blessed  personage  who 
was  to  be  "  a  light  to  lighten  the  Gentiles,  and  the 
glory  of  his  people  Israel  ;"*  while  the  greater  por- 

*  Luke  ii.  32. 


62  THE  CHARACTER  OP  SIMEON. 

tionof  the  blinded  and  sensual  nation  of  the  Jews, 
intoxicated  with  vain  ideas  of  temporal  grandeur 
and  dominion,  desired  and  expected  a  temporal 
deliverer  and  king,  there  were  others  who,  with  the 
devout  Simeon,  piously  and  wishfully  wailed  for 
him  as  "  the  consolation  of  hraeV — as  that  divine 
and  compassionate  Saviour  who  was  to  "  comfort 
his  people,  and  have  mercy  on  his  afflicted"* — who 
was  to  be  the  divine  Messenger  of  the  "  glad  tidings 
to  Zion,"  that  "  the  days  of  her  mourning  were 
ended,"  and  that  "  the  Lord  should  be  her  ever- 
lasting light,  and  her  God,  her  glory."t  They 
waited  for  him  as  "  the  consolation  of  Isi'ael"  as 
that  compassionate  Saviour  who,  bearing  the  mes- 
sages of  reconciliation,  would  "  preach  good  tidings 
to  the  meek,"  would  "  bind  up  the  broken-hearted," 
and  "  comfort  those  that  mourn. "f 

With  what  ardent  desires  must  the  pious  saints 
of  Israel — who,  mourning  under  the  weakness  and 
guilt  of  human  nature,  felt  the  inefficacy  of  all 
those  observances,  which  were  but  "  shadows  of 
good  things  to  come,"  to  shed  light  and  peace  on 
their  sorrowing  spirits-r-have  looked  forward  to  the 
coming  of  Him  who  was  to  "  bring  in  everlasting 
righteousness  ;"§  who,  by  the  sacrifice  of  himself, 
was  to  put  away  sin,  and  to  perfect  for  ever  his 
penitent  and  faithful  people!  What  transport  must 
have  swelled  the  breast  of  the  pious  Simeon  when, 
in  that  blessed  babe,  whom,  with  sacred  ardour,  he 
pressed  to  his  holy  bosom,  he  beheld  the  divine 
"  consolation  of  Israel,"  and  rejoiced  in  that  salva- 
tion which  a  fallen  world  had  so  long  desired  to 
behold! 

*  Isa.  xlix.  13.  t  Isa.  Ix.  20. 

|Isa.  Ixi.  1,2.  §Dan.  ix.34. 


THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEON.  63 

My  brethren,  transports  not  less  ardent  should 
swell  our  breasts,  for  our  eyes  have  seen,  drawn  by 
the  pencil  of  inspiration,  the  "  consolation  of  Is- 
rael;" we  have  beheld  "  the  glory  of  the  only- 
begotten  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace  and  truth,"* 
who  has  proclaimed  for  us  the  glad  tidings  that 
God  is  in  him  reconciling  the  world  unto  himself. 
To  us  has  this  divine  Teacher  displayed  the  glori- 
ous attributes  of  the  almighty  Father,  and  those 
graces  and  virtues  which,  by  conforming  us  to  the 
divine  image,  prepare  us  for  the  fruition  of  divine 
bliss.  For  us  has  he  purchased  that  blessed  spirit 
of  sanctification  and  comfort,  by  whose  mighty 
power  we  are  raised  from  the  ruins  of  the  fall,  and 
comforted  under  the  sorrows  of  this  wearisome 
pilgrimage.  For  us,  he,  the  divine  Conqueror,  hath 
stripped  of  its  horrors  the  dark  valley  of  the  shadow 
of  death,  and  opened  the  path  to  those  immortal 
abodes  where,  in  the  presence  of  his  Father,  there 
is  fulness  of  joy. 

We  bless  thee,  then,0  thou  consolation  of  Israel ! 
we  ardently  desire  the  full  manifestation  of  thy 
salvation,  enlightening  and  purifying  our  hearts, 
and  conforming  us  to  thy  holy  temper  and  spotless 
example;  we  humbly  and  supremely  confide  in  thee 
as  the  all-sufficient  and  compassionate  Saviour,  in 
whom  the  guilty  find  a  refuge,  the  weary  and  heavy- 
laden  an  eternal  rest.  And  with  increasing  strength 
and  ardour  may  we  advance  in  the  knowledge  of 
the  living  God.,  and  of  thee,  O  divine  Jesus,  whom 
he  has  sent,  and  whom  to  know  aright  is  life 
eternal. 

After    having  contemplated    the   character   of 

*  St.  John  i.  14. 


G4  THE  CHARACTER  OF  SIMEON. 

Simeon,  his  exemplary  justice  and  integrity,  his 
ardent  devotion,  his  holy  faith  in  the  promised  sal- 
vation of  God,  we  are  not  surprised  at  the  last 
circumstance  which  the  sacred  writer  relates  of 
him — that 

"  The  Holy  Ghost  was  upon  him." 

His  exalted  virtues  could  only  have  been  pro- 
duced by  the  aa^ency  of  thnt  blessed  Spirit  who  is 
the  source  of  truth  and  holiness.  Simeon  indeed 
possessed  not  only  those  celestial  graces  by  which 
the  Holy  Spirit  enlightens,  renews^  and  consoles 
the  faithful  servants  of  God,  but  those  energetic 
impulses  which  animate  the  soul  with  prophetic 
gifts.  We  are  told  that  "  Simeon  was  led  by  the 
Spirit  into  the  temple,"  and  there  beholding  the 
infant  Jesus,  burst  forth  in  a  prophetic  display  of 
his  future  glory,  character,  and  offices. 

But  in  the  devout  Simeon,  as  in  all  the  people 
of  God,  this  divine  Spirit  dwells  with  those  less 
splendid,  but,  in  the  sight  of  God,  more  acceptable 
graces,  love,  joy,  meekness,  faith.  It  is  the  office 
of  this  blessed  Spirit  to  enlighten,  renew,  console, 
guide  us  to  everlasting  life.  What  cause  of  holy 
triumph,  that  while  we  diligently  work  out  our 
salvation,  God,  by  his  almighty  Spirit,  worketh  in 
us  both  to  will  and  to  do ;  that,  while  we  sojourn 
in  this  vale  of  imperfection  and  tears,  God  has  sent 
forth  the  light  and  the  truth  of  his  blessed  Spirit, 
to  lead  us,  to  bring  us  to  his  holy  hill,  to  himself, 
our  exceeding  and  eternal  joy! 

Behold  thou,  my  brethren,  in  the  holy  saint 
whose  character  has  been  exhibited  to  you,  the 
exalted  standard  of  moral  and  religious  duty  at 
which  you  are  to  aim,  and  the  attainment  of  which 


THE  CHARACTER  OP  SIMEON.  G5 

can  alone  elevate  you   amon^   the    ranks  of  the 
acceptable  servants  of  your  God,  and  qualify  you 
for  his  favour.    "Just,"  not  merely  in  the  restricted 
sense  which  renders  to  all  their  dues,  but  in  that 
enlarged  application  vi^hich  embraces  every  duty  of 
personal  and  social  righteousness.     "  Devout,"  not 
only  acknowledging,  and  admiring,  and  venerating 
the  existence,  attributes,  and  providence  of  God, 
but  habitually  rendering  to  him  homage,  and  mani- 
festing a  sense  of  the  obligations  that  bind  you  to 
him,  in  the  reverence,  submission,  and  obedience 
that  characterize  your  lives.    And  all  your  personal, 
moral,  and  religious  virtues  must  be  animated  and 
controlled  by  faith  in  him,  whom  Simeon  "  waited 
for"  in  holy  hope,  as  "  the  consolation  of  Israel," 
but  who  is  revealed  to  us  as  "  the  Saviour,  who  is 
Christ  the  Lord,"*  through  whose  grace  we  are  to 
be  sanctified,  and  through  whose  merits  we  are  to 
be  accepted. 

In  the  attainment  of  this  universal  righteousness, 
this  evangelical  piety  and  faith,  without  which  we 
shall  not  be  partakers  of  the  salvation  of  God,  we 
are  animated  by  the  exalted  assurance,  that  "  the 
Holy  Ghost  is  with  us,"  the  power  and  strength  of 
the  third  person  of  the  adorable  Godhead,  inscru- 
tably but  effectually  operating  in  us,  inspiring  us 
with  good  desires,   and  enabling  us  to  bring  the 
same  to  good  effect,   creating  a  clean  heart  and 
renewing  a  right  spirit  within  us,  directing  us  in 
all  our  doings  with  his  most  gracious  favour,  and 
furthering  us  with  his  continual  help.   Let  us  realize 
this  truth,  incomprehensible  as  it  may  be  to  our 
limited  understandings,  that,  instead  of  depending 

*  Luke  ii.  11. 

Vol.  III.  9 


66  THE  CHARAeTER  OF  SIMEON. 

solely  on  our  own  capricious  resolutions,  on  our 
own  feehle  endeavours,  we  may  in  watchfulnes  and 
prayer,  in  the  worship  and  ordinances  of  the  sanc- 
tuary, seek  that  strength  from  above,  that  power 
of  the  Holy  Ghost  which,  in  every  temptation, 
however  formidable,  will  be  sufficient  for  us,  and 
in  every  duty,  however  arduous,  will  be  made  per- 
fect in  our  weakness. 

Constantly  then  let  us  cherish  the  divine  but 
mysterious  truth,  that  in  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God 
our  virtues  have  an  almighty  Guardian,  our  sorrows 
a  divine  Comforter;  and  let  us  implore  him  to  shed 
upon  us,  as  he  did  upon  Simeon  of  old,  not  the 
overpowering  blaze  of  his  miraculous  gifts,  but  the 
soft  and  serene  lustre  of  his  celestial  graces,  to  be 
unto  us  a  spirit  of  wisdom  and  understanding,  a 
spirit  of  counsel  and  ghostly  strength,  a  spirit  of 
knowledge  and  true  godliness,  and  to  fill  us  with 
the  spirit  of  his  holy  fear,  to  defend  us  from  all 
evil,  and  especially  from  the  awful  guilt  of  resisting 
his  grace  and  quenching  his  holy  inspiration.  Oh 
thou  blessed  Spirit !  lead  us  through  all  the  changes 
and  trials  of  this  mortal  life,  to  that  heavenly  state 
where  the  faith  which  thou  dost  now  inspire,  shall 
terminate  in  the  blissful  vision  of  the  divine  glory ; 
and  those  duties  which  thou  dost  now  enable  us  to 
discharge,  shall  all  be  resolved  into  the  exalted 
work  of  praising  and  adoring,  for  ever  and  ever, 
thee,  O  Holy  Ghost,  with  the  Father  and  the  Son^ 
ever  one  God. 


SERMON    VII. 


i)UTIES  INCULCATED  BY  THE  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  GOD. 


Isaiah  Ixiv.  8. 

But  now,  O  Lord,  thou  art  our  Father ;  we  are  the  clay,  and  thou 
art  the  potter;  and  we  are  all  the  work  of  thy  hand. 

The  people  of  Israel  had  been  visited  by  the 
sore  judgments  of  God.  The  prophet  introduces 
them  confessing  their  sins,  acknowledging  the  jus- 
tice of  those  judgments  which  their  sins  provoked, 
and  adoring  the  sovereign  power  and  authority  of 
Jehovah  in  all  his  dispensations  towards  them. 
"  But  now,  O  Lord,  thou  art  our  Father" — thou 
hast  made  us,  and  dost  guide,  and  p'eserve,  and 
govern  us;  we  are  under  thy  almighty  discipline 
and  control.  "  We  are  the  clay,  and  tiiou  art  the 
potter" — thy  power  over  us  is  as  absolute  and 
sovereign  as  that  of  the  potter  over  the  clay  which 
he  fashioneth  according  to  his  will.  *'  We  are  all 
the  work  of  thy  hand" — and  therefore  bound  to 
submit  to,  and  adore  thy  righteous  judgments. 

All  who  believe  in  the  being  and  providence  of 
God,  the  Maker  and  Governor  of  all  things,  will, 
in  words  at  least,  be  ready  to  acknowledge  that 
they  are  the  creatures  of  God's  power ;  that  they 
are  subject  to  his  government  and  control ;  that 
his  sovereign  authority  none  can  resist ;  and  that 
all  the  endowments  of  body  and  mind,  and  all  the 
enjoyments  and  blessings  of  life,  are  the  gifts  of 


68  DUTIES  INCULCATED  BY 

his  bounty.  *•'  That  they  are  the  clay,  and  he  is  the 
potter;  and  they  are  all  the  work  of  his  hand." 
But  though  these  truths,  revealed  in  Scripture,  are 
sanctioned  by  the  dictates  of  reason,  and  when 
proposed  to  the  serious  and  unprejudiced  judgment 
of  mankind,  will  be  generally  received ;  yet,  even 
among  those  who  acknowledge  them,  there  are  few 
who  properly  consider  the  nature  and  obligation  of 
the  duties  which  result  from  them.  Instead,  there- 
fore, of  my  attempting  to  prove  or  illustrate  the 
sovereign  authority  of  God  over  us,  I  shall  take 
this  as  a  truth  admitted,  and  consider  the  duties 
that  are  founded  upon  it,  as  the  practical  part  of 
the  subject  with  which  we  are  immediately  con- 
cerned. 

God  is  "  our  Father" — in  that  sense  which  makes 
him  the  source  of  our  being,  our  endowments,  and 
all  our  mercies,  we  are  as  absolutely  and  entirely 
subject  to  his  control,  as  the  passive  "  clay"  is  to 
the  forming  hand  of  the  "  potter."  "  We  are  the 
work  of  his  hand,"  and  therefore  subject  to  him  as 
dependent  creatures  to  an  almighty  Creator. 

The  consideration  of  the  sovereign  authority  of 
God  over  us  should 

Teach  us  humility ; 

It  should  excite  in  us  the  sentiment  of  depend- 
ence; 

It  should  produce  profound  submission; 

It  should  lead  us  to  render  to  him  homage  and 
obedience. 

I.  It  should  teach  us  humility — the  humility  of 
temper,  and  the  humility  of  intellect. 

Pride  and  self-confidence  ill  become  those  who 
possess  nothing  which  they  have  not  received,  and 


THE  SOVEREIGNTY  UP  GOTV.  69^ 

which  they  do  not  hold  at  the  will  of  a  superior 
Being.  The  creatures  who  were  produced  by  the 
fashioning  hand  of  that  almighty  Creator,  whose 
fiat  in  an  instant  would  reduce  them  to  the  dust 
from  whence  they  were  taken,  how  idle  in  them  to 
boast  of  the  endowments  which  they  possess,  as  if 
they  were  original  and  underived,  and  held  by  the 
certain  tenure  of  their  own  will !  The  talents,  the 
wealth,  the  honour,  that  for  a  moment  elevate  one 
man  above  another,  what  cause  are  they  for  the 
swelling  emotions  of  self-confident  pride  1  Proud 
man,  what  has  he  which  he  has  not  received  1  The 
distinctions  which  now  excite  his  vanity  and  elate 
his  pride,  he  has  derived  from  the  sovereign  bounty 
of  that -almighty  Being,  who,  if  he  had  seen  fit, 
could  have  conferred  them  on  another  humble  in- 
dividual, whom  this  vain  boaster  considers  so  far 
beneath  him.  We  are  in  the  hands  of  that  Being, 
as  clay  in  the  hands  of  the  potter,  and  he  may 
crumble  to  pieces  the  pillars  that  support  our  pride, 
and  reduce  us  to  a  level  with  those  who  are  now 
the  objects  of  our  scorn.  What  are  the  lessons 
then  which  our  dependence  on  the  sovereign  power 
of  our  almighty  Maker  should  teach  us?— to  refer 
to  him  all  the  advantages  and  distinctions  which 
we  possess — to  acknowledge  them  to  be  the  gifts 
of  his  bounty,  calling  for  humble  gratitude  instead 
of  presumptuous  pride — to  rejoice  in  the  possession 
of  them  with  trembling,  knowing  the  dependent 
tenure  on  which  we  hold  them,  the  pleasure  of 
God,  who  giveth  not  to  man  an  account  of  his 
doings — and  to  adore  the  sovereign  providence  of 
him  who  is  the  Author  of  all  our  talents,  distinctions, 
and  advantages — and  thus  to  acknowledge  in  deep 
humility  his  supreme  and  resistless  authority. 


70  DUTIES  INCULCATED  BY 

From  the  unlimited  power  which  God  possesses 
over  us,  he  derives  the  right  to  impose  on  us  what- 
ever commands  he  pleases,  and  to  require  our 
assent  to  whatever  truths  he  may  reveal.  The 
source  of  intelligence  and  goodness,  as  well  as  of 
power,  he  justly  claims  the  homage  and  obedience 
of  the  understandings,  and  wills  and  affections  of 
his  intelligent  creatures.  Let  not  then  the  human 
mind,  but  a  ray  of  intelligence  from  the  infinite  and 
eternal  source  of  reason,  disclaim  its  dependent 
origin,  and  oppose  its  feeble  light  to  the  brightness 
of  eternal  wisdom.  Let  not  man,  the  work  of  God's 
hands,  disclaim  the  authority  of  him  that  made 
him,  and  set  up  his  own  derivative  powers  and 
dependent  will,  as  the  standard  and  source  of  truth 
and  authority.  "  Nay  but,  O  man,  who  art  thou 
that  repliest  against  God  I  Shall  the  thing  formed 
say  to  him  that  formed  it.  Why  hast  thou  made  me 
thus  I  Hath  not  ihe  potter  power  over  his  clay  f* 
Hath  not  the  sovereign  Being  in  whose  hands  thou 
art,  and  who  is  infinite  in  truth  and  perfection,  a 
right  to  require  thy  assent  and  obedience  to  what- 
ever truths  and  commands  he  may  choose  to  im- 
pose 1  Is  there  any  source  of  truth  but  the  eternal 
mind,  any  supreme  Lawgiver  but  the  almighty 
Maker  who  formed  thee,  any  tribunal  but  that 
which  he  has  constituted,  to  which,  as  a  rational 
agent,  thou  wilt  be  called  finally  to  account  1  Wilt 
ihou  presume  to  set  up,  independent  of  him,  a 
standard  of  truth  and  virtue  in  the  reason  and 
nature  of  things  t  But  who  constituted  the  reason 
and  nature  of  things'!  Who  determined  the  im- 
mutable difierence  between  truth  and  error,  good 

*  Rom.  ix.  20,  21. 


THE  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  GOD.  71 

and  evil,  but  the  infinite,  eternal,  self-existent  Je- 
hovah, the  only  source  of  all  intellectual,  and  phy- 
sical, and  moral  existence,  of  all  the  relations  that 
subsist  between  them,  and  all  the  truths  and  duties 
which  result  from  theml  We  cannot  ascertain 
these  truths  but  as  he  has  revealed  them — we  must 
receive  these  relations  as  he  has  determined  them. 
His  truths  and  his  will  must  indeed  harmonize 
with  the  reason  and  nature  of  things,  for  he  has 
constituted  them  all.  In  his  truths  then  we  must 
seek  for  wisdom — in  his  will  for  happiness  and 
good. 

The  great  source  of  opposition  to  the  will  of 
God  arises  from  an  impatience  of  restraint  on  the 
bold  flights  of  reason,  from  an  aversion  to  acknow- 
ledge the  revelations  of  the  Eternal  as  supreme 
over  the  deductions  and  operations  of  the  human 
mind.  An  habitual  sense  of  the  supreme  and  righ- 
teous authority  of  God  over  us,  will  produce  that 
spirit  of  deep  and  unfeigned  humility  which  be- 
comes us  as  creatures,  and  will  preserve  us  from  that 
unlicensed  impatience  of  restraint  which  would  lead 
us  to  oppose  the  divine  authority  and  government, 
which  are  infinitely  perfect,  wise  and  good,  and 
therefore  the  only  guide  of  our  faith,  and  rule  of 
our  conduct.  Our  sense  of  the  supreme  power  of 
the  Being  who  made  and  sustains  us  cannot  be  too 
strong — our  humility  cannot  be  too  profound  ;  for 
we  are  in  his  hands  as  clay  in  the  hands  of  the 
potter,  fashioned,  controlled,  and  devoted  as  he 
pleases. 

2.  The  consideration  of  the  sovereign  power  and 
authority  of  God  should  also  excite  the  sentiments 
of  dependence. 


72  DUTIES  INCULCATED  BY 

This  dependence  should  be  as  universal  and 
profound  as  the  power  of  God  is  unlimited  and 
entire;  extending  to  all  our  counsels,  to  all  our 
thoughts,  to  all  our  ways,  to  all  our  actions.  It  is 
his  invisible  but  ever-present  power  which  preserves 
our  physical  and  moral  faculties,  enabling  the  in- 
tellect to  search  for  and  discover  truth.  It  is  the 
illuminating  and  all-powerful  grace  of  his  Holy 
Spirit  which  leads  us  to  the  discernment  of  spiritual 
things,  and  "  directs  us  in  the  ways  of  his  laws, 
and  in  the  works  of  his  commandments,"*  not  only 
"  inspires  us  with  good  desires,  but  enables  us  to 
bring  the  same  to  good  efFect."t  And  it  is  his 
providence  which  overrules  all  our  ways  and  actions 
to  his  sovereign  purposes.  "  In  God  we  live,  and 
move,  and  have  our  being."t  "  He  ruleth  over  all,"§ 
"  He  is  the  Author  of  every  good  and  perfect  gift."|| 
"  Without  him  we  can  do  nothing."1I  This  supreme 
and  unbounded  agency  of  God  we  know  does  not 
destroy  our  free  agency,  nor  irresistibly  control  our 
minds.  We  may  not  indeed  be  able  to  reconcile 
the  free  agency  of  the  creature  with  the  supreme 
power  of  the  Creator ;  and  for  what  one  of  the  many 
facts  of  nature,  or  of  the  truths  of  reason,  are  we 
able  to  account  1  The  most  common  fact,  which  is 
the  basis  of  all  our  reasonings  and  all  our  conduct, 
that  external  objects  act  upon  the  mind  so  as  to 
raise  accurate  ideas  of  them,  and  exciie  our  desires 
and  affections,  is  utterly  beyond  our  comprehension. 
He,  therefore,  who  rejects,  because  he  cannot  ac- 
count for  them,  the  truths  of  Scripture,  must  con- 

*  See  Collect  in  Communion  Service, 
t  See  Collect  for  Easter  Sunday.  |  Acts  xvii.  28. 

§  Psalm  ciii.  19.  ||  James  i.  17. 

fl  See  Collect  for  the  first  Sunday  after  Trinity. 


THE  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  GOD.  7g| 

sistently  reject  the  truths  of  nature ;  and  then,  tossed 
on  the  troubled  ocean  of  scepticism,  where  will  he 
find  a  rest  for  his  wandering  mind  1 

My  brethren,  it  is  sufficient  for  us  to  know  that 
this  supreme  and  universal  providence  of  God  is 
declared  in  that  sacred  word  which  we  receive  on 
the  most  luminous  and  satisfactory  evidence ;  and 
that,  transcending  as  it  may,  in  some  respects,  our 
comprehension,  reason  acknowledges  it  as  a  neces- 
sary attribute  of  a  supreme  and  almighty  Creator. 
It  is  our  duty,  therefore,  in  all  our  ways  to  acknow- 
ledge the  sovereign  authority  and  providence  of 
Almighty  God,  to  implore  him  by  his  power  to 
preserve  and  invigorate  the  faculties  of  our  minds 
in  all  their  researches  and  operations,  by  his  grace 
to  enlighten  our  understandings,  to  sanctify  our 
hearts,  to  strengthen  us  in  the  discharge  of  duty, 
and  by  his  providence  to  guide  and  govern  us  in 
all  our  ways.  It  is  our  duty  to  ascribe  to  his  grace 
and  power,  strengthening  and  aiding  us  in  all  the 
good  that  we  perform,  all  the  virtues  that  adorn 
and  elevate  us.  It  is  our  duty  especially  to  adore 
him  as  the  Author  of  our  salvation,  as  that  omni- 
potent Governor  of  all  things,  who,  by  the  influences 
of  his  grace  and  the  operations  of  his  providence, 
is  accomplishing  in  us,  and  in  the  world,  his  own 
good  pleasure. 

3.  The  consideration  of  the  sovereign  authority 
of  God  over  us  should  produce  in  us  submission. 

For  "  the  thunder  of  his  power  who  can  with- 
stand]"* Sovereign  power  merely,  though  it  can- 
not excite  trust  and  confidence,  yet  demands  ira- 

*  Job  xxvi.  14. 

Vol,  III.  10 


74  DUTIES  INCULCATED  BY 

plicit  submission  ;  and  united  as  it  is,  in  the  Maker 
and  Ruler  of  the  universe,  with  righteousness  and 
mercy,  resistance  to  it  would  not  only  be  ineffectual^ 
but  would  display  a  presumptuous  and  arrogant 
assertion  of  our  own  will  in  opposition  to  infinite 
wisdom,  perfect  goodness,  and  supreme  power. 
*'  God  is  greater  than  man,"  is  the  language  of 
inspiration,  ''why  dost  thou  strive  with  him?"* 
"  When  he  gives  quietness,  who  can  trouble  1  and 
when  he  hideth,  who  can  behold  hiniff  "  Who 
is  able  to  stand  before  him  f'J  "  The  earth  shakes 
and  trembles,  the  foundations  of  heaven  are  moved 
when  he  is  wroth. "§  In  his  character,  as  that 
gracious  and  merciful  Father  who  knovveth  whereof 
we  are  made,  and  remembereth  that  we  are  but 
dust,  God  calls  forth  our  filial  confidence  and  affec- 
tion. As  that  almightij  Father,  in  whose  hands 
we  are  as  clay  in  the  hands  of  the  potter ;  as  "  a 
great  God,  a  mighty  and  terrible,  who  regardeth 
not  persons  nor  taketli  reward,"j]  he  claims  our 
submissive  fear  and  reverence.  The  consideration 
of  the  awful  sovereignty  of  God  is  often  necessary 
to  chasten  the  too  familiar  fervours  of  that  love 
which  the  view  of  his  compassion  and  goodness  is 
calculated  to  excite.  It  is  especially  necessary  to 
compose  and  settle  in  us  a  spirit  of  profound  and 
unreserved  submission  to  his  will.  That  resigna- 
tion which  is  founded  only  on  a  view  of  his  mercy 
and  love,  is  apt  to  become  restless  and  importunate ; 
it  is  apt  to  reason,  that  the  heavenly  Father,  who. 
is  infinite  in  compassion,  will  surely  pity  the  dis- 
tresses of  his  children,  and  remove  their  afflictions. 
But  unvail  the  awful  majesty  of  God,  and  the  view 

*  Job  xxxiii.  12, 13.        t  Job  xxxiv.  29.        |  1  Saiii.  vi.  20, 
§  3  Sam.  xxii.  8.  |1  Dent.  x.  17. 


THE  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  GOD.  75 

of  his  sovereign  authority  represses  tlie  spirit  of 
murmuring.  "  Wo  unto  him  that  striveth  with  hie 
Maker !  Let  the  potsherd  strive  with  the  pot- 
sherds of  the  earth.  Sliall  the  clay  say  to  him  that 
fashioneth  it,  What  makest  thou'?"*  Let  us  accus- 
tom ourselves  then,  my  brethren,  witli  all  our  views 
of  the  mercy  and  love  of  God  as  our  heavenly 
Father,  to  connect  a  regard  to  his  supreme  and 
sovereign  authority  over  us.  All  his  attributes  claim 
our  homage.  Fear  and  submission  are  duties  which 
we  owe  to  his  sovereignty  and  power,  as  well  as 
gratitude  and  trust  to  his  mercy  and  compassion. 
The  fervours  of  love  should  be  chastened  by  the 
more  sober  emotions  of  holy  fear.  Submission  to 
his  will,  as  tvisc  and  good,  should  be  strengthened 
by  the  consideration  that  it  is  resistless.  It  would 
be  as  vain  as  impious  to  resist  him ;  for  "  we  are 
the  clay,  and  he  is  the  potter ;  and  we  are  all  the 
work  of  his  hands." 

4.  The  consideration  of  the  sovereign  power  and 
authority  of  God  over  us,  should  teach  us,  lastly, 
the  necessity  of  securing  his  favour,  by  rendering 
to  him  homage  and  obedience. 

Superior  power  compels  obedience  by  operating 
on  our  interests  and  our  fears.  He  who  "  stretcheth 
forth  the  heavens ;  who  setteth  fast  the  mountains, 
being  girded  about  with  power ;  who  frustrateth  the 
tokens  of  the  liars,  and  maketh  diviners  mad  ;  who 
turneth  wise  men  backward,  and  maketh  their 
knowledge  foolish;  who  saith  to  the  deep.  Be 
dry  ;"t  "  who  stilleth  the  noise  of  its  waves,  and  the 
tumult  of  the  people"]: — he  "  who  kills  and  makes 

*  Xsa.  xlv.  9.  t  Isa.  xliv.  24,  25, 27.  t  Psalm  Ixv.  7. 


76  DUTIES  INCULCATED  BY 

alive,  who  wounds  and  who  heals,  out  of  whose 
hand  none  can  deliver"* — he  "  who  is  Lord  alone 
of  all  the  kingdoms  of  the  earth,"!  is  certainly  en- 
titled to  the  homage  of  the  creatures  he  has  made, 
the  subjects  of  his  fearful  and  resistless  power.  In 
his  hand,  as  the  clay  in  the  hands  of  the  potter, 
vainly  would  they  attempt  to  resist  his  will. 

The  folly  and  presumption  of  sin  are  displayed 
by  considering  it  as  a  contempt  of  the  authority, 
and  violation  of  the  will  of  a  sovereign  and  all- 
powerful  God. 

The  profane  swearer,  who  casts  forth  his  curses 
and  execrations,  insults  the  sacred  name,  and  im- 
precates the  vengeance  of  that  almighty  Jehovah, 
who  is  able  in  an  instant  to  seal  his  blasphemous 
tongue  in  silence,  or  to  torment  it  in  inextinguish- 
able flame.  The  libertine,  who  riots  in  licentious 
pleasure ;  the  drunkard,  who  wallows  in  intemper- 
ance ;  the  debauchee,  who  brutalizes  himself  in 
sensuality — all  are  waging  war  against  their  Maker, 
against  that  almighty  Sovereign  who  ie  able  in  an 
instant  to  destroy  both  soul  and  body  in  hell.  The 
awful  presumption,  guilt  and  danger  of  the  sinner 
consist  in  his  being  the  avowed  enemy  of  his 
almighty  Creator,  and  exposed  every  instant  to  be 
cut  off  by  the  stroke  of  almighty  vengeance.  Every 
act  of  injustice,  every  trick  of  fraud,  every  deed  of 
oppression,  in  short,  every  wilful  transgression  of 
the  law  of  God,  is  a  contempt  of  his  sovereign 
authority,  because  it  supposes  that  he  is  either  too 
indifferent  or  too  weak  to  vindicate  his  violated 
laws.  Ah !  though,  in  merciful  forbearance,  (well 
for  us,  brethren,  that  it  is  so,)  his  anger  delay  for 

*  Job  X.  7.       ■  t  2  Kings  xix.  15, 


THE  SOVEREIGNTY  OF  GOD.  77 

a  while,  the  crimes  of  the  wicked  and  ungodly  are 
augmenting  its  flames,  which  will  at  last  burst  upon 
them  with  overwhelming  fury.  "  For  the  day  com- 
eth,  that  shall  burn  as  an  oven  ;  and  all  the  proud, 
and  all  that  do  wickedly,  shall  be  as  stubble  :  and 
the  day  cometh  that  shall  burn  them  up,  saith  the 
Lord  of  hosts."*  That  great  and  terrible  day — the 
elements  melting  with  fervent  heat,  the  heavens 
passing  away,  the  earth  consumed  by  the  flames 
which  are  rending  it  asunder,  and  united  with  the 
crash  of  departing  worlds,  the  despairing  cries  of 
condemned  sinners,  driven  to  that  place  where 
dwells  the  devouring  fire — that  day  will  awfully 
vindicate  the  sovereign  power  and  authority  of  the 
Maker  and  Ruler  of  the  universe.  Imagination  is 
not  drawing  unreal  scenes — they  are  the  sober  and 
awful  delineations  of  the  word  of  God.  Who  in- 
deed can,  by  searching,  find  out  the  immensity  of 
his  power"?  What  imagination,  by  her  boldest 
efforts,  can  display  the  treasures  of  that  wrath 
which  Jehovah  hath  in  store  for  his  im-penitent 
adversaries  ? 

He  who  came  in  great  humility  to  effect  the 
designs  of  infinite  mercy,  will  come  again  in  the 
almighty  power  of  the  Godhead,  to  execute  the 
purposes  of  wrath — of  that  terrible  but  just  wrath 
which  is  denounced  against  those  whom  the  over- 
tures of  mercy  cannot  soften,  nor  the  influences  of 
divine  grace  subdue ;  but  who  continue  in  their  sins, 
resisting  and  contemning  the  righteous  authority 
and  power  of  their  almighty  Maker  and  Sovereign. 
In  that  day  of  eternal  justice,  in  that  day  of  almighty 
vengeance,  those  only  will  be  able,  through  the 

*  Malachi  iv.  1. 


78  DUTIES  INCULCATED,  &,C. 

merits  of  the  divine  Mediator,  to  stand  and  to  abide 
in  peace  and  safety — who  have  yielded,  through  the 
grace  of  the  divine  Sanctifier,  entire,  unreserved 
obedience  to  their  almighty  Creator — who  have 
humbly  received  the  truths  of  his  revelation — who 
have  devoutly  adored  the  dispensations  of  his  provi- 
dence— who  have  implicitly  obeyed  the  requisitions 
of  his  righteous  laws — and  who  have  thankfully 
accepted  salvation  in  that  way,  in  which  only,  ac- 
cording to  his  sovereign  pleasure,  he  conveys  it, 
through  the  merits  and  grace  of  his  Son  Jesus 
Christ. 

Is  this  our  character,  brethren?  do  we  humbly 
receive  the  truths,  obey  the  laws,  adore  the  dispen- 
sations, accept  the  salvation  of  our  almighty  Maker? 
Let  the  inquiry  be  immediate — let  it  be  serious^ — 
for  if  this  be  not  our  character,  alas !  there  is  no 
safety  for  us ;  almighty  power  is  engaged  against 
us — engaged  to  vindicate,  in  our  punishment,  the 
insulted  authority  of  our  Sovereign  and  our  Judge. 
But  if  in  our  understandings,  our  hearts,  our  lives, 
we  submit  to  the  dominion  of  him  who  has  a 
supreme  right  to  rule  us,  then  his  sovereign  power 
will  not  be  an  object  of  dismay  to  us,  but  of  holy 
confidence  and  joy;  for  it  will  be  exerted  for  our 
present  peace,  for  our  eternal  felicity.  Then,  not 
in  the  alarm  and  terrors  of  a  guilty  spirit,  but  in 
the  peace  and  joy  of  a  conscience  reconciled  to 
God  and  assured  of  his  favour,  we  may  reverently 
but  triumphantly  adore  him.  "  Thou,  O  Lord,  art 
our  Father ;  we  are  the  clay,  and  thou  art  the  potter ; 
and  we  are  all  the  work  of  thy  hand." 


SERMON   VIII. 


THE  APPEALS  OF  CHRIST  TO  THE  SINNER 


Rev.  iii.  20. 


Behold,  I  stand  at  the  door,  and  knock :  if  any  man  hear  my  voice, 
and  open  the  door,  I  will  come  in  to  him,  and  sup  with  him,  and 
he  with  me. 

This  is  the  language  addressed  by  Jesus  Christ, 
who  is  styled  the  faithful  and  true  witness  from  the 
beginning  of  the  creation  of  God,  to  the  lukewarm 
and  impenitent  church  of  Laodicea.  The  patient 
forbearance  which  he  exercised  towards  her,  his 
solicitude  for  her  recovery  from  her  spiritual  in- 
sensibility, and  his  affectionate  invitation  to  this 
purpose,  are  denoted  by  the  symbolical  allusion  of 
his  standing  at  the  door  and  knocking.  Should  the 
impenitent  Laodiceans  hear  his  voice  and  open  the 
door — should  they,  by  humble  and  lively  penitence, 
faith  and  obedience,  receive  and  treat  him  as  their 
Lord  and  Redeemer — he  graciously  promises  to 
come  in  to  them,  and  sup  with  them,  and  they  with 
him — they  should  be  restored  to  his  favour  and 
enriched  by  his  blessings. 

Alas !  brethren,  the  church  of  Laodicea  is  the 
emblem  of  too  many  professing  Christians  in  every 
age.  By  their  remissness,  their  lukewarmness,  their 
sensual  pursuits,  by  their  impenitent  neglect  to 
fulfil  the  holy  conditions  of  the  covenant  of  their 
salvation,  they  have  shut  the  door  of  their  hearts 


80  THE  APPEALS  OF  CHRIST 

against  their  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  But 
he  stands  at  the  door  and  knocks.  Their  ingrati- 
tude, their  insensibility,  their  numerous  provoca- 
tions, cannot  induce  him  utterly  to  forsake  them; 
he  still  importunes  with  them  to  yield  him  the 
possession  of  their  hearts,  and  graciously  promises, 
that  if  they  will  hear  his  voice,  and  in  humble  peni- 
tence and  faith  submit  to  him  as  their  Lord  and 
Saviour,  they  shall  be  received  into  the  closest  and 
most  endearing  union  with  him,  and  shall  partake 
of  the  inestimable  blessings  of  his  love  and  favour. 
Lukewarm  and  unholy  Christian !  impenitent 
sinner !  who  refusest  to  render  to  thy  Saviour  the 
supreme  homage  of  thy  heart  and  affections — who 
refusest  him  admission  into  that  soul  which  he  has 
redeemed,  and  which  he  is  desirous  to  purify  by 
his  grace,  and  to  bless  with  his  everlasting  favour, 
how  astonishing  is  his  forbearance  and  his  com- 
passion !  He  sues  for  admission  into  that  bosom 
which  thou  hast  closed  against  him,  and  urges  his 
solicitation  by  the  exalted  promise,  that  if  thou  wilt 
open  unto  him,  he  will  come  in  and  bless  thee. 

"  Behold,  I  stand  at  the  door,  and  knock :  if  any 
man  hear  my  voice,  and  open  the  door,  I  will  come 
in  to  him,  and  sup  with  him,  and  he  with  me." 

When  we  hear  this  affectionate  invitation,  we 
are  naturally  prompted  to  contemplate — 

The  interesting  character  of  him  who  thus  solicits 
admission  into  our  hearts ; 

The  tender  and  affecting  matmer  by  which  he 
solicits  this  admission ; 

The  reception  which  is  due  from  us  to  a  character 
so  interesting,  and  an  invitation  so  tender  and 
affecting;  and 


TO  THE  SINNER.  81 

The  blessings  which  we  shall  enjoy  in  yielding 
him  the  possession  of  our  hearts. 

Who  is  he  that  solicits  admission  into  our  souls, 
to  sanctify,  to  rule,  and  to  bless  them  \ 

A  personage  in  himself  the  most  exalted,  and 
sustaining  to  us  the  most  exalted  relations — Jesus 
Christ  the  Son  of  God — he  who  was  with  the  Father 
before  the  world  was — he  who,  from  all  eternity, 
was  the  brightness  of  the  Father's  glory  and  the 
express  image  of  his  person — he,  the  Lord  of  all 
things,  by  whom  all  things  were  created,  and  by 
whom  all  things  consist — Jesus  Christ,  who  is  the 
blessed  and  only  Potentate,  the  King  of  kings  and 
Lord  of  lords,  the  Alpha  and  Omega,  the  beginning 
and  the  ending,  the  first  and  the  last,  the  Almighty. 
This  is  indeed  a  mystery  which  surpasses  our  con- 
ception, but  which  claims  our  profound  adoration — 
a  mystery  not  greater  indeed  than  that  divine  nature 
into  which  there  is  no  searching — not  greater  than 
our  own  nature,  which  so  often  baffles  our  inquiries 
— not  greater  than  innumerable  truths  of  reason 
and  religion,  which  command  our  assent — and  a 
mystery  which  claims  our  most  profound  adoration 
— the  second  person  in  the  eternal  Trinity,  he  who, 
equal  with  God,  was  from  all  eternity  partaker  of 
the  glory  and  felicity  of  the  Godhead,  sues  for 
admission  into  our  souls. 

And  in  the  most  exalted  and  endearing  characters 
does  he  solicit  admission. 

He  claims  the  possession  of  our  souls  as  our  Cre- 
ator,  who  formed  us  out  of  nothing,  and  breathed 
into  us  an  immortal  spirit — as  our  Preserver,  who 
sustains  us  in  life,  and  protects  our  frail  being  from 

Vol,  m.  IJ 


^  THE  APPEALS  OF  CHRIST 

the  innumerable  dangers  which  surround  us— as 
our  Benefactor,  who  surrounds  us  with  the  count- 
less blessings  of  his  providence — and,  a  character 
still  more  endearing  and  interesting,  he  presents 
himself  before  us  and  sues  for  the  possession  of 
our  hearts  as  our  Redeemer,  who,  for  our  sakes, 
endured  poverty,  scorn,  persecution,  was  buffeted 
and  scourged,  and  poured  forth  his  life  as  one  for- 
saken by  his  God — He  who,  as  our  Redeemer, 
never  withdrawing  from  us  his  compassion,  is  con- 
stantly interceding  for  us,  sending  forth  his  spirit 
to  guide  and  sanctify  us,  and  who  is  preparing  for 
us  a  place  in  his  own  presence. 

And  what  is  the  mode  in  which  he  presents  his 
claim  to  our  hearts,  to  our  supreme  homage  and 
service  ] 

Having  violated,  by  repeated  transgressions,  the 
law  of  our  nature,  the  dictates  of  reason  and  of 
conscience,  the  commands  of  God,  as  good  as  he 
is  powerful,  it  is  an  act  of  mercy  which  spares  us, 
thus  sinful  and  guilty,  which  rescues  us  from  that 
prison  of  darkness  where  the  angels  who  have 
sinned  are  reserved  in  chains.  We  deserve  only 
wrath — wrath  from  the  Sovereign  of  the  universe. 
But  should  our  offended  God  entertain  towards  us 
any  purposes  of  mercy,  what  would  be  the  utmost 
of  our  hopes  X  We  might  reasonably  indeed  expect 
that  pardon  would  not  be  extended  to  guilt  so 
aggravated,  but  on  conditions  the  most  rigorous 
and  severe,  conditions  enforced  by  the  stern  voice 
of  violated  authority.  The  utmost  that  we  could 
hope  would  be,  that  these  conditions  of  pardon 
would  be  rendered  practicable  by  the  divine  aid  of 
the  Sovereign  whom  we  had  offended.     But  here 


TO  THE  SINNER. 


again  is  a  mystery  which   claims   our   profound 
adoration.     God  did  not  appear  to  us  in  the  dark- 
ness, the  tempest,  the  terrors  of  Mount  Sinai,  an 
inflexible  Sovereign  and  Judge.     He  unfolds  him- 
self to  us,  his  rebellious  creatures,  in  the  light,  the 
radiance,  the  compassion  of  our  heavenly  Father. 
He  so  loved  us,  as  to  send  to  us  his  only-begotten 
Son,  not  to  announce,  in  the  majesty  of  offended 
justice,  the  stern  conditions  of  our  pardon,  but,  in 
the  lowliness  of  the  Lamb  of  God,  to  make  a  pro- 
pitiation for  our  sins,  in  the  mild  accents  of  the 
Prince  of  Peace,  to  propose  the  easy  terms  of  ac- 
ceptance, and  with  the  tenderness  and  compassion 
of  our  dearest  Friend,  to  invite  us  to  come  unto 
him  and  receive  rest  and  salvation.    And  even  when 
insensible  to  the  calls  of  gratitude  and  duty,  and 
regardless  of  our  own  present  and  eternal  interest, 
we  resolve  to  continue  in  our  sins,  and  thus  defy 
the  justice  of  heaven,  and  trample  under  foot  that 
mercy  which  is  sealed  by  the  blood  of  the  Son  of 
God ;   still   this   almighty  Redeemer,   who    could 
summon  legions  of  angels  to  vindicate  his  insulted 
glories,  becomes  the  suppliant — and  the  suppliant 
to  the  guilty  rebels  who  had  rejected  him.;  he  stands 
at  the  door  and  knocks ;   he  sues  for  admittance 
into  our  souls;  he  sues  for  admittance  by  those 
temporal  blessings  which  he  still  bestows  upon  us, 
sinners,  who  are  unworthy  of  them,  and  who,  while 
they  deserve  the  vengeance,  are  thus  crowned  with 
the  goodness  of  their  almighty  Lord.    Jesus  Christ 
sues  for  admittance  into  our  hearts  by  those  chas- 
tisements and  warnings,  by  the  loss  of  health  and  of 
temporal  comforts,  by  those  escapes  from  impend- 
ing danger  and  threatening  death,  which  are  calcu- 
lated to  arouse  us  to  a  sense  of  the  necessity  of 


84  THE  APPEALS  OF  CHRIST 

securing  our  eternal  peace  by  making  our  Saviour 
our  friend. 

Jesus  Christ  also  sues  for  admittance  into  our 
souls  by  all  the  instructions,  all  the  promises,  all 
the  threatenings,  of  his  holy  word. 

By  the  instructions  of  his  word  he  displays  the 
excellence  of  that  divine  Being  who  claims  our 
service — the  reasonableness  of  this  service,  and  of 
those  laws  by  which  God  designs  to  promote  the 
present  and  eternal  happiness  of  his  creatures — 
which  unfold  the  glory  of  him  who  came  to  save 
us,  the  nature  of  his  gracious  offices,  and  the  way 
of  salvation  through  his  merits  and  grace,  which, 
rendering  plain  to  us  every  part  of  our  duty,  leaves 
us  without  excuse  under  the  violation  of  it. 

Not  only  by  the  instructions  of  his  word  does 
Jesus  Christ  sue  for  admittance  into  our  souls,  but 
by  all  its  promises.  These  promises  hold  out  pardon 
to  the  penitent,  though  their  sins  be  as  scarlet,  and 
red  like  crimson — deliverance  to  the  captives  of  sin, 
and  rest  to  those  who  are  burdened  with  sorrow — 
promises  of  succour  to  the  tempted,  of  comfort  to 
the  afflicted,  of  peace  to  the  conscience  agitated  by 
guilt,  of  purity  to  the  soul  polluted  by  transgression, 
of  mercy  to  cheer,  and  of  grace  to  strengthen  the 
dejected  and  feeble — promises  of  communion  with 
God,  the  eternal  source  of  goodness  and  of  happi- 
ness, of  confidence  in  his  favour  who  is  the  Sove- 
reign of  the  universe,  of  joy  in  Christ  who  is  the 
all-sufficient  and  almighty  Saviour,  and  of  the  as- 
surance of  his  full  and  never-failing  mercy — and 
when  the  soul  has  passed  her  earthly  pilgrimage, 
promises  of  an  eternal  and  blessed  rest  from  all  sin 
and  from  all  sorrow,  of  a  glorious  entrance  into  the 


TO  THE  SINNER.  d& 

church  triumphant,  into  the  presence  of  God  the 
Judge  of  all,  of  Jesus  Christ  the  Mediator  of  the 
new  covenant,  of  angels  and  archangels,  and  of  the 
spirits  of  the  just — promises  of  a  felicity  increasing 
through  eternal  ages. 

To  render  his  applications  for  admittance  still 
more  powerful,  Jesus  Christ  unites  with  his  promises 
the  threatenings  of  his  word,  declaring  against  those 
who  reject  his  counsel  and  will  none  of  his  reproof, 
remorse  of  conscience,  fearful  apprehensions  of 
future  wrath,  despair  in  death,  torment  in  eternity — 
unfolding  the  terrors  of  that  day,  when  he,  the 
Judge,  the  almighty  Judge,  comes  to  repay  venge- 
ance to  his  adversaries,  recompense  to  his  enemies 
— the  day  when  the  ungodly  will  call  on  the  rocks 
and  mountains  to  fall  on  them  and  to  hide  them 
from  the  face  of  him  that  sitteth  on  the  throne,  and 
from  the  wrath  of  the  Lamb — the  day  which  will 
reveal  every  evil  thought,  every  deed  of  darkness, 
reveal  them  in  the  light  of  eternity,  reveal  them 
before  an  assembled  universe — the  day  when  the 
Bentence  shall  proceed  from  the  mouth  of  that 
Judge  (whose  solicitations  sinners  had  so  often 
disregarded,)  Depart,  ye  cursed — depart  from  the 
holy  presence  of  God,  from  the  glory  of  his  celestial 
courts,  from  the  blissful  society  of  saints  and  angels, 
and  the  spirits  of  the  righteous — depart  from  the 
light,  the  peace,  the  never-ending  felicity  of  heaven 
— depart  into  outer  darkness,  into  wailing  and  wo, 
into  the  society  of  the  devil  and  his  angels,  where 
their  worm  dieth  not,  and  their  fire  is  not  quenched 
—depart /or  ever! 

Oh!  who  can  dwell  with  the  devouring  fire,  who 
can  lie  down  in  everlasting  burnings ! 

These  are  the  awful  threatenings  which  Jesus 


86  THE  APPEALS  OP  CHRIST 

Christ  addresses  to  sinners,  not  to  fill  them  with 
unnecessary  terrors,  not  to  destroy  their  comfort 
and  their  happiness,  but  to  awaken  them  to  attend 
to  the  things  which  belong  to  their  peace,  before 
they  are  for  ever  hidden  from  their  eyes — to  arouse 
them  to  seek  the  Lord  while  he  may  be  found,  to 
call  upon  him  while  he  is  near.  Jesus  Christ,  ever 
prosecuting  his  purposes  of  mercy,  seeks,  by  these 
threatenings,  to  excite  those  whom  promises  and 
invitations  cannot  allure,  to  give  him  admission 
into  their  souls. 

Not  only  by  the  instructions,  the  promises,  and 
the  threatenings  ©f  his  word,  but  by  the  checks 
and  warnings  of  conscience  and  his  Holy  Spirit, 
does  he  seek  to  induce  us  to  open  our  hearts  to 
him,  to  yield  him  homage  and  obedience.  Every 
reflection  which  arises  in  our  minds  on  the  guilt 
and  danger  of  our  evil  ways ;  every  apprehension 
of  future  wrath ;  every  emotion  of  sensibility  to  the 
exercises  and  joys  of  religion;  every  desire  after 
the  favour  of  God  ;  every  sentiment  of  sorrow  for 
having  offended  him  ;  every  resolution  to  return  to 
that  God  and  Saviour  whom,  by  our  sins,  we  have 
so  greatly  offended  ;  all  these  are  the  gracious  ap- 
plications to  us,  by  the  Spirit  of  Jesus  Christ,  to 
open  our  hearts  to  him,  our  Lord  and  Master,  our 
compassionate  Saviour,  our  best  Friend. 

By  the  ministrations,  and  by  the  sacraments  of 
his  church,  does  this  benevolent  Redeemer,  never 
weary  in  his  work  of  mercy,  seek  to  accomplish 
the  same  gracious  purpose. 

In  the  sanctuary,  his  gracious  voice  is  heard, 
beseeching  us  to  turn  from  our  evil  ways,  and  to 
be  reconciled  unto  God.  In  the  preaching  of  the 
word,  we  are  presented  with  a  view  of  the  guilt,  the 


TO  THE  SINNER.  87 

misery,  the  corrupting  bondage  of  sin,  contrasted 
with  the  exalted  purity  and  joy  of  a  conscience 
cleansed  from  guilt  by  the  mercy,  and  redeemed 
from  sin  by  the  grace  of  Christ,  we  behold  dis- 
played the  glory  of  the  Saviour's  character,  his 
tenderness,  his  compassion,  his  long-suffering,  his 
numberless  and  unparalleled  acts  of  love  to  us,  his 
willingness  and  his  power  to  save.  Through  every 
avenue  the  Saviour  has  sought  to  gain  admission 
into  our  hearts. 

Hear  him  addressing  us  in  those  services  of  the 
sanctuary,  by  which,  confessing  our  sins,  supplicat- 
ing his  grace  and  mercy,  and  proclaiming  his  praise, 
we  may  obtain  his  favour.  Hear  him  calling  us,  in 
the  sacrament  of  baptism,  to  forsake  a  world  which 
lieth  in  wickedness  and  is  obnoxious  to  the  wrath 
of  God,  and  to  enter  into  the  fold  of  salvation,  that 
holy  church  where  forgiveness  of  sins  is  extended  to 
the  penitent,  and  mercy  and  grace  dispensed  to  the 
believing  and  obedient.  He  calls  us  in  this  holy 
sacrament  to  forsake  a  state  of  sin  and  death,  and 
to  make  our  abode  in  that  Zion  which  is  none 
other  than  the  house  of  God  and  the  gate  of  heaven, 
and  which  prepares  its  faithful  members  for  ex- 
changing the  imperfect  praises  of  an  earthly  sanc- 
tuary for  the  pure,  and  full,  and  endless  songs  of 
the  blest  in  the  temple  above,  the  celestial  Zion. 
Thus  born  of  water  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost  in  bap- 
tism, made  members  of  Christ,  children  of  God, 
and  heirs  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven,  he  provides 
for  our  renewing  by  the  Holy  Ghost,  for  our  effec- 
tual and  continual  death  unto  sin,  and  new  birth 
unto  righteousnes.  In  the  apostolic  ordinance  of 
confirmation,  the  laying  on  of  hands,  he  calls  us  to 
assume  our  baptismal  engagements,  to  die  to  sin 


88  THE  APPEALS  OF  CHRIST 

and  to  rise  again  to  righteousness,  that  thus  our 
souls,  established  in  holiness,  may  be  made  meet 
for  him  to  dwell  in,  and  prepared  for  the  glories  of 
our  heavenly  inheritance.  And  here,  by  the  chief 
minister  of  his  church,  he  assures  the  humble  and 
the  faithful  of  his  favour  and  goodness  to  them, 
and  renewedly  pledges  to  them  the  strengthening 
influences  of  the  Holy  Ghost  the  Comforter.  In 
the  sacrament  of  the  supper,  showing  him  forth  as 
the  Lamb  of  God  slain  for  us,  he  beseeches  us,  by 
his  agony  and  bloody  sweat,  by  his  cross  and  pas- 
sion, by  his  precious  death,  by  his  glorious  resur- 
rection, to  open  our  souls  to  him,  that  he  may 
wash  them  from  sin,  that  he  may  nourish  and 
strengthen  them  to  everlasting  life.  Blessed  Jesus! 
innumerable  are  the  ways  by  which  thou  dost  dis- 
play thy  forbearance  and  compassion  towards  us, 
by  which  thou  dost  sue  for  admittance  into  our 
guilty  souls.  Thou  dost  stand  at  the  door  of  our 
hearts  and  knock,  not  as  a  stern  and  rigorous 
sovereign  demanding  admittance,  but  as  a  tender 
and  compassionate  friend,  whose  importunate  soli- 
citations increase  even  with  the  increase  of  our 
insensibility  and  provocations.  Thy  gracious  voice 
is  heard  in  the  blessings  and  in  the  chastisements 
of  thy  providence,  in  the  instructions,  the  promises, 
and  the  threatenings  of  thy  word,  in  the  checks  of 
conscience,  in  the  strivings  of  thy  Holy  Spirit,  in  the 
ministry,  and  the  sacraments,  and  the  ordinances 
of  thy  church.  In  all  these  we  hear  thee  suing  us 
to  admit  thee,  who  art  the  only  life  of  our  souls, 
our  only  defender  from  the  terrors  of  divine  justice, 
our  only  guide,  through  death  and  the  grave,  to  the 
glories  of  immortality. 
And  what  reception,  brethren,  should  this  blessed 


TO  THE  SINNER.  89 

kedeemer  receive  from  us  1  what  effect  should  in- 
vitations so  tender  and  affecting  produce  upon  ua  ? 
If  every  emotion  of  sensibility  be  not  chilled  in  our 
bosoms,  if  we  are  not  wholly  insensible  to  our 
dearest  interests,  it  is  impossible  that  these  inqui- 
ries can  appear  uninteresting. 

When  Jesus  Christ  sues  for  admittance  into  our 
hearts,  we  should  hear  his  voice  and  open  unto  him 
— we  should  hear  his  voice  with  the  emotions  of 
penitence. 

When  we  contemplate  the  infinite  dignity,  the 
exalted  excellence  of  his  character;  when  we  reflect 
on  the  numerous  and  tender  invitations  by  which 
he  seeks  to  gain  admission  into  our  hearts,  we 
should  be  impressed  with  his  forbearance  and  love 
towards  us;  and  with  a  deep  conviction  of  our  own 
insensibility  and  ingratitude  in  having  so  long  and 
so  often  slighted  a  Friend  and  Saviour  so  conde- 
scending and  tender,  we  should  no  longer  turn  a 
deaf  ear  to  the  invitations  of  the  Redeemer,  who 
has  so  long  supplicated  us  to  grant  him  a  place  in 
our  bosoms;  we  should  become  suppliants,  and 
prostrate  at  the  feet  of  our  compassionate  and  long 
insulted  Saviour;  we  should  implore  him — '  Enter 
in,  Lord,  and  take  possession  of  the  souls  which 
thou  hast  redeemed,  but  which  have  been  too  long 
estranged  from  thee,  too  long  slighted  thy  grace 
and  contemned  thy  mercy — enter  in,  Lord,  and 
dwell  in  them  as  their  Saviour  and  their  Lord.' 

By  faith  also  we  must  hear  the  voice  of  the 
Saviour,  and  open  our  hearts  to  him. 

It  is  by  faith  indeed  that  we  realize  the  divine 
glory  of  his  character;  and  receive  him  in  all  his 

Vol.  III.  12 


90  THE  APPEALS  OF  CHRIST 

gracious  offices ;  as  our  Prophet,  to  instruct  us  in 
divine  truths;  as  our  Priest,  to  atone  for  our  sinsf 
and  our  King,  to  rule  over  us.  It  is  by  faith  that 
we  realize  the  fulness  of  his  love  for  us,  the  all- 
sufficiency  of  his  power,  and  his  infinite  willingness 
to  save  us.  It  is  by  faith  that  we  embrace  all  his 
precious  promises,  trusting  in  those  merits  which 
are  our  only  defence  from  the  demands  of  incensed 
justice,  and  confiding  in  that  grace  which,  made 
perfect  in  our  weakness,  enables  us  to  overcome 
the  enemies  of  our  salvation,  and  purifying  us  from 
sin,  makes  our  souls  a  fit  habitation  for  the  Lord  of 
crlory.  "  Lord,  I  hear  thy  voice,"  is  the  language  of 
the  believing  soul ;  "  I  acknowledge  thee  to  be  the 
only-begotten  Son  of  the  Fatlier,  the  only  Mediator 
between  God  and  man.  Enter  in  and  dwell  in  my 
soul,  for  thy  blood  only  can  cleanse  it  from  guilt, 
thy  grace  only  redeem  it  from  siil.  Thou  alone  art 
my  refuge  from  the  condemning  accusations  of 
conscience,  from  the  terrors  of  divine  justice;  thou 
only  art  my  deliverer  from  the  prison  of  the  tomb ; 
thou  only  art  my  guide  to  the  glories  of  immortality; 
and  thou  wilt  be  the  fulness  of  my  joy  through  the 
ages  of  eternity." 

And  lastly,  my  brethren,  we  hear  the  voice  of 
the  Saviour  and  open  our  hearts  to  him,  by  yield- 
ing, through  his  Spirit  exciting  and  aiding,  sincere 
obedience  to  all  his  commands — imbibing  that  meek, 
that  tender,  that  forgiving  spirit  which  distinguished 
iiim — following  the  holy  example  which  he  left  us 
— like  him,  ever  intent  on  doing  the  will  of  our 
Father  in  heaven — striving  to  adorn  his  doctrine  in 
all  things — walking  in  all  his  commandments  and 
ordinances  blameless — instant  in  prayer,  not  sloth- 


TO  THE  SINNER.  91 

ful  in  business,  fervent  in  spirit,  serving  the  Lord. 
When  we  thus  render  Jesus  Christ  sincere,  supreme, 
and  universal  obedience,  he  becomes  established  in 
our  souls — he  takes  complete  possession  of  them. 

And  what  are  the  blessings  that  proceed  from 
this  admittance  of  Jesus  Christ  into  our  hearts? 

They  are  expressed  in  figurative  language—"  i 
will  sup  with  him,  and  he  with  me."  The  most 
intimate  and  affectionate  communion  subsists  be- 
tween Christ  and  the  soul  who  thus  receives  him. 
Jesus  Christ  is  his  friend  and  brother — God  his  re- 
conciled God  and  Father — his  sins,  however  many, 
are  forgiven— his  conscience,  however  agitated,  is 
soothed  to  peace — his  soul,  however  polluted  by  sin, 
is  purified  and  established  in  holiness  :  a  "  spiritual 
feast"  is  prepared  for  him — ^the  approving  testimony 
of  a  conscience  reconciled  unto  God — confidence 
in  the  protection  of  him  who  is  able  to  save  and  to 
destroy,  and  who  hath  promised  to  make  all  tilings 
work  together  for  good  to  those  who  love  him — 
joy  in  the  favour  of  him  whose  favour  is  life,  whose 
loving-kindness  is  better  than  life — trust  in  that 
Saviour  who  is  constantly  interceding  for  him,  who 
is  preparing  for  him  mansions  of  bliss  eternal  in 
the  heavens — a  foretaste  of  those  celestial  and  ever- 
lasting joys  reserved  in  heaven  for  the  servants  of 
God :  these  are  the  joys  which  Jesus  Christ  dis- 
penses to  those  in  whose  souls  he  dwells ;  he 
nourishes  them  with  divine  truths,  he  strengthens 
them  by  his  grace,  he  feeds  them  with  the  bread 
of  life — with  divine  and  everlasting  joys. 

What  then  shall  prevent  us  from  heariqg  his 
voice  and  opening  unto  him]  He  stands  at  the 
door  and  knocks.    Hq  solicits  admission  by  his 


92  THE  APPEALS  6P  CHRIST 

blessings  and  by  his  chastisements,  by  the  instruc- 
tions, the  promises,  and  the  threatenings  of  his 
word,  by  the  monitions  of  conscience  and  the 
strivings  of  his  Spirit,  by  the  ministrations,  the 
services,  and  the  ordinances  of  his  church — by  all 
these  powerful  methods  he  solicits  us. 

But  with  us  it  rests  to  hear  his  voice,  to  open 
our  hearts  to  him.  This,  through  his  grace,  we  are 
able  to  do.  Jesus  Christ  does  not  force  admittance, 
he  does  not  by  his  almighty  grace  overpower  our 
inclinations.  He  stands  at  the  door  and  knocks ; 
and  his  very  declaration,  that  if  we  will  hear  his 
voice  and  open  unto  him,  he  will  come  in,  implies, 
that  hearing  his  voice  and  opening  unto  him  must 
depend,  through  his  grace  exciting  and  aiding,  on 
ourselves. 

What  then  shall  prevent  us  from  hearing  the 
voice  of  this  gracious  Saviour — from  opening  our 
hearts  to  this  our  compassionate  and  almighty 
Friend  1  Shall  the  world,  its  sinful  pursuits  and 
passions,  exclude  him  from  our  souls'?  Ah!  the 
world  is  soon  to  pass  away — the  world  is  to  be 
consumed  by  the  breath  of  God's  displeasure— and 
the  world  we  must  soon  leave,  its  enjoyments  we 
must  soon  relinquish  ;  and  if  Jesus  Christ  has  not 
taken  possession  of  our  souls,  they  will  become 
the  seats  (»f  remorse,  of  anguish,  of  never-ending 
misery.  Yes,  blessed  Jesus,  in  excluding  thee  from 
our  souls,  we  exclude  from  them  the  light  of  heaven, 
the  light  of  joy— we  draw  over  them  the  darkness 
of  the  place  of  wo,  the  darkness  of  endless  despair. 

Brethren,  if  you  have  any  regard  for  the  welfare 
of  your  immortal  souls,  any  desire  for  a  felicity  that 
knows  no  end,  any  terror  for  an  anguish  that  never 
terminates,  any  sensibility  to  the  tender  and  press^ 


TO  THE  SINNER.  93 

ing  invitations  of  the  Saviour  who  died  for  you, 
who  intercedes  for  you,  who  implores  you  to  be 
saved,  open  your  hearts  to  him,  hear  his  voice ; 
resist  not  the  monitions  and  strivings  of  his  Spirit; 
listen  to  his  instructions,  live  a  life  of  faith  in  him, 
obey  his  laws,  attend  on  his  ordinances,  submit  to 
his  grace ;  he  will  come  in  and  sup  with  you,  he 
will  enrich  your  souls  with  every  virtue,  he  will 
refresh  them  with  the  present  joys,  he  will  save 
you  from  that  prison  of  despair  to  which  those  are 
consigned  who  reject  his  invitation,  and  where  no 
sounds  are  heard  but  weeping,  and  wailing,  and 
gnashing  of  teeth ;  and  he  will  receive  you  into 
those  celestial  courts,  where  you  shall  join  in  the 
never-ceasing  chorus  of  praise  and  joy,  and  shall 
celebrate  with  him  the  everlasting  festival  of  love, 
enjoying  the  ineffable  and  ceaseless  communica- 
tions of  his  favour  and  his  bliss  through  endless 
ages. 


SERMON  IX. 


PARABLE  OF  THE  MAKKIAGE  FEAST 


Matt.  xxii.  3. 

And  he  sent  forth  his  servants  to  call  them  that  were  bidden  to  the 
wedding :  and  they  would  not  come. 

Thus  contemptuously  was  the  invitation  of  the 
king  rejected,  who  made  a  marriage  festival  for  his 
son  ;  in  which  parabolic  history  is  conveyed  much, 
important  instruction. 

The  mode  of  conveying  religious  and  moral 
truths  by  parables,  which  are  similitudes  drawn 
from  the  objects  of  nature,  or  from  civil  and  social 
institutions,  was  frequently  practised  by  our  blessed 
Lord.  It  is  a  mode  of  instruction  founded  in  the 
reason  and  nature  of  things  ;  for  from  the  peculiar 
character  of  spiritual  truths,  we  cannot  receive  the 
full  and  clear  knowledge  of  them,  except  by  analogy 
with  those  things  which  are  the  objects  of  our  sense 
and  consciousness.  The  parabolic  mode  of  instruc- 
tion was  also  prompted  by  a  regard  to  the  genius 
of  the  people  among  whom  our  Lord  dwelt,  which 
led  to  the  use  of  highly  figurative  language  ;  and 
at  all  periods,  and  among  all  people,  it  is  gratifying 
to  the  imagination,  and  peculiarly  calculated  forci- 
bly and  permanently  to  impress  the  heart.  Espe- 
cially where  the  object  is  to  convey  reproof,  or  to 
enforce  unwelcome  or  irritating  truths,  parables 
atford  an  opportunity  of  indirectly,  yet  effectually^ 


PARABLE  OP  THE  MARRIAGE  FEAST.  95 

answering  these  purposes,  without  alarming  the 
prejudices  or  immediately  exciting  the  resentment 
of  the  persons  accused  or  opposed. 

For  all  these  reasons,  but  especially  for  the  last, 
bur  Saviour  so  frequently  spake  by  parables.  His 
mission  was  to  a  disobedient  and  gainsaying  people 
— a  people  blinded  by  their  prejudices  and  en- 
slaved by  their  vices.  These  prejudices  and  vices 
Were  deeply  opposed  to  the  pure  and  self-denying 
spirit  of  that  kingdom  which  he  came  to  establish ; 
and  to  have  combated  them  by  direct  attack  would 
have  so  strongly  awakened  the  pride  of  the  Jews 
and  enkindled  their  resentment,  as  not  only  to  have 
precluded  all  hope  of  his  instructions  and  reproofs 
making  any  impression  on  their  hearts,  but  to 
have  exposed  him  to  persecution,  and  prematurely, 
"  before  his  hour  was  come,"*  endangered  his  life. 
Hence  it  became  a  dictate  of  prudence  to  veil  his 
reproofs  and  unwelcome  instructions  under  the 
pleasing  garb  of  allegory;  thus  exciting  the  imagi- 
nation and  awakening  the  attention,  and  before 
prejudice  or  resentment  could  be  roused,  impress- 
ing the  understanding  and  gaining  the  heart. 

On  one  of  these  delicate  and  unpleasant  occasions 
was  the  parable  delivered  which  I  mean  now  to  set 
before  you. 

The  immediate  object  of  our  Saviour  was  to  re- 
prove the  Jews  for  their  incredulity,  to  impress  on 
them  their  guilt  and  ingratitude  in  rejecting  the 
exalted  blessings  of  that  dispensation  of  mercy 
which  he  came  to  proclaim,  to  denounce  the  awful 
judgments  which  would  overtake  them  for  their  sin 
in  rejecting  hira  who  came  to  save  them,  and  for 

*  St.  John  vii.  30. 


96  PARABLE  OF  THE 

persecuting  unto  death  the  messengers  of  his  salva- 
tion. It  was  his  object  to  proclaim  to  them  the 
determination  of  their  almighty  Sovereign  to  exclude 
them  from  the  privileges  of  his  chosen  people  on 
account  of  their  unbelief,  and  to  receive  the  believing 
Gentiles  as  his  covenant  people,  and  thus  finally  to 
teach  them  that  their  being  "  called"  to  be  the 
peculiar  people  of  the  Most  High  would  be  of  no 
avail  to  them ;  on  the  contrary,  would  only  enhance 
their  guilt  and  their  condemnation,  unless  they 
exercised  those  holy  and  obedient  dispositions  and 
virtues  which  would  qualify  them  fur  being  liually 
"  chosen"  to  everlasting  life. 

These  were  most  important  and  solemn,  but,  to 
the  Jews,  most  unwelcome  truths,  calculated  to 
mortify  their  pride  and  to  excite  their  deadly  re- 
sentment. Our  Lord,  therefore,  chose  to  convey 
them  through  the  medium  of  an  appropriate  alle- 
gory, which  softened  without  weakening  their  force. 

"  The  kingdom  of  heaven  is  like  unto  a  certain 
king  which  made  a  marriage  for  his  son."* 

By  the  kingdom  of  heaven  in  this  passage,  and 
many  other  parts  of  Scripture,  is  meant,  not  the 
final  kingdom  of  bliss  eternal  in  the  heavens,  but 
the  preparatory  kingdom  of  God  on  earth,  the 
Gospel  dispensation.  Thus,  John  the  Baptist  an- 
nounced the  introduction  of  this  dispensation  in  the 
solemn  call — "  Repent,  for  the  kingdom  of  heaven," 
the  kingdom  of  the  Messiah  on  earth,  the  Gospel 
dispensation,  "  is  at  hand."t  This  dispensation, 
on  account  of  its  rich  and  exalted  blessings,  and 
of  the  joy  which  these  blessings  are  calculated  to 
inspire,  is  very  properly  compared  to  a  feast  made 

*  Matt,  jxii,  3,  t  Matt.  iii.  3. 


MARRIAGE  FEAST.  97 

by  a  king  on  the  most  felicitous  occasion  that  could 
occur — "  the  marriage  of  his  sou." 

"  And  he  sent  forth  his  servants  to  call  them  that 
were  bidden  to  the  wedding :  but  they  would  not 
come." 

The  invitation  was  renewed  in  terms  the  most 
courteous  and  pressing. 

"  He  sent  forth  other  servants,  saying,  Tell  them 
which  are  bidden.  Behold,  I  have  prepared  my 
dinner:  my  oxen  and  my  fatlings  are  killed,  and 
all  things  are  ready:  come  unto  the  marriage."* 

One  would  suppose  that  the  perverse  incredulity 
which  rejected  the  former  invitation,  would  be  sub- 
dued by  this  generous  and  affectionate  renewal  of 
it ;  but 

"  They  made  light  of  it,  and  went  their  way,  one 
to  his  farm,  and  another  to  his  merchandise. "f 

And  to  complete  their  criminality, 

"  The  remnant  took  his  servants,  and  entreated 
them  spitefully,  and  slew  ihem."J 

Astonishing  as  was  their  conduct,  it  was  an  exact 
exhibition  of  the  crimes  of  the  Jews.  Their  fore- 
fathers had  turned  a  deaf  ear  to  the  voice  of  the 
prophets,  seeking  to  reclaim  them  from  their  corruot 
and  idolatrous  ways  to  ihe  fear,  the  service,  and  the 
favour  of  the  living  God.  Reluctant  to  execute 
upon  them  the  fierceness  of  his  just  anger,  God 
sent  forth  his  messenger,  John  the  Baptist,  to  warn 
them  of  his  judgments,  and  to  invite  them  to  pre- 
pare for  that  dispensation  of  mercy  which  the  lono" 
expected  Messiah  was  to  proclaim.  By  him,  the 
hope  of  his  people  Israel,  did  the  Lord  their  God 
unfold  to  the  Jews  the  rich  blessings  of  his  grace, 

*  Matt.  xxii.  3,  4.  f  Matt.  xxii.  5.  f  Matt,  xxii.  6, 

Vol.  hi.  13 


98  PARABLE  OP  THE 

and  invite  them  to  come  unto  him  and  be  saved. 
The  apostles  whom  this  blessed  Redeemer  sent 
forth  to  his  lost  sheep  of  the  house  of  Israel,  re- 
newed the  gracious  invitation,  and  urged  it  by 
every  motive  that  could  alarm  their  fears  or  animate 
their  hopes ;  hut  "  they  made  light  of  it" — "  they 
would  not  come."  Blinded  by  their  prejudices,  and 
enslaved  by  their  corrupt  passions,  they  preferred 
the  sensual  gratifications  of  the  world  to  the  pure 
and  heavenly  blessings  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom. 
The  invitations  of  mercy,  instead  of  awakening 
their  gratitude,  kindled  the  resentment  and  malice 
of  their  hearts.  They  took  the  messengers  who 
bore  from  their  heavenly  Sovereign  the  overtures 
of  peace,  and  "  treated  them  spitefully,  and  slew 
them."  The  faithful  warnings  of  the  Baptist  they 
disregarded,  and  he  finally  paid  for  his  fidelity  the 
forfeit  of  his  life.  The  Lord  of  glory,  who  came  to 
save  them,  they  loaded  with  insults,  and  they  ter- 
minated his  career  of  benevolence  in  the  horrors  of 
an  ignominious  death.  The  fury  that  thus  drank 
the  blood  of  the  Master,  pursued  his  servants.  And 
the  apostles,  who  sought  to  bring  their  blind  and 
unhappy  countrymen  to  participate  of  the  blessings 
of  redeeming  mercy,  were  assailed  by  cruel  mock- 
ings  and  scourgings,  and  finally  persecuted  unto 
death. 

Tiie  judgments  inflicted  on  this  guilty  people  are 
awfully  displayed  in  the  next  verse  of  the  parable. 

"When  the  king  heard  thereof,  he  was  wroth; 
and  he  sent  forth  his  armies,  and  destroyed  those 
murderers,  and  burnt  up  their  city."* 

In  the  awful  fulfilment  of  this  denunciation,  Jeru- 

*  Matt.  xxii.  7. 


BIARRIAGE  FEAST.  09 

salem  was  "  trodden  under  foot;"  "  one  stone"  of 
that  obdurate  city  which  had  "  killed  the  prophets, 
and  stoned  those  who  were  sent  unto  her,  was  not 
left  upon  another  ;"*  and  all  its  guilty  inhabitants, 
after  encountering  the  horrors  of  famine,  "  fell  by 
the  sword"  of  invading  armies. 

The  invitation  to  the  Gospel  feast,  thus  rejected 
by  the  Jews,  was  addressed  to  the  Gentiles. 

"  They  who  were  bidden  were  not  worthy.  The 
king  therefore  said  to  his  servants,  Go  ye  into  the 
highways  and  hedges,  and  as  many  as  ye  shall  find, 
bid  to  the  marriage.  So  those  servants  went  to 
the  highways,  and  gathered  all  as  many  as  they 
could  find,  both  good  and  bad  :  and  the  wedding 
was  furnished  with  guests. "f 

It  was  perfectly  consistent  with  Eastern  hospi- 
tality, to  invite  the  stranger  and  the  pilgrim  to 
share  in  the  pleasures  of  their  feasts.  And  thus 
does  the  parable  denote  the  calling  of  the  Gentiles. 
They  who,  in  a  spiritual  sense,  were  journeying 
along  the  highways  and  hedges,  "  aliens  from  the 
commonwealth  of  Israel,  and  strangers  to  the  cove- 
nant of  promise,"^  were  called  to  partake  of  those 
Gospel  privileges  whi<;h  the  Jews  contemptuously 
rejected.  The  merciful  invitation  was  restrained 
by  no  exceptions ;  all,  "both  good  and  bad,"  were 
invited  to  the  Gospel  feast ;  "  the  sick,"  as  well  as 
they  who  were  comparatively  "  whole  ;"  "  publicans 
and  sinners,"  as  well  as  they  who  were  compara- 
tively righteous,  were  called  to  partake  of  the 
blessings  of  salvation.  The  call  was  that  of  the 
evangelical  prophet — "  Ho,  every  one  that  thirsteth, 
come  ye  to  the  waters,  and  he  that  hath  no  money, 

*  Watt,  xxiii,  37.         t  Matt.  »ii.  8, 9, 10.        |  Eph.  ii.  12. 


100  PARABLE  OF  THE 

come  ye,  buy  and  eat."*  And  the  merciful  invita- 
tion  was  not  addressed  in  vain  to  insensible  hearts* 
"  for  many  came  from  the  east  and  from  the  west, 
from  the  north  and  from  the  south,  and  sat  down 
with  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob,  in  the  kingdom 
of  God  ;"t  while  they,  for  whom  these  blessings 
were  primarily  designed,  "  the  children  of  the  king- 
dom," the  unbelieving  Jews,  were  finally  "  shut 
out." 

But  shall  we  conclude  from  the  gracious  exten- 
sion of  the  invitation  to  all,  both  "  good  and  bad," 
that  no  qualifications  were  required  in  these  guests 
at  the  heavenly  banquet,  and  that,  therefore,  the 
salvation  of  the  Gospel  is  unconditional,  and  be- 
stowed on  all,  whatever  may  be  their  character  and 
conduct?  A  conclusion  so  erroneous  and  dangerous, 
is  effectually  repelled  by  the  parable ;  for 

"  When  the  king  came  in  to  see  the  guests,  he 
saw  there  a  man  who  had  not  on  a  wedding  gar- 
ment."t 

It  was  the  custom  in  the  East  to  come  to  the 
marriage  banquet  in  a  splendid  garment,  and  to 
appear  without  one  was  considered  as  a  mark  of 
great  disrespect  to  the  master  of  the  feast.  But  it 
may  be  asked,  with  what  justice  could  the  guest  in 
the  parable,  who  is  represented  as  hastily  called 
from  the  highways  and  hedges,  be  censured  for 
appearing  without  a  wedding  garment,  to  procure 
which,  he  had  not  the  time,  even  if  he  possessed 
the  means  1  It  was  customary  at  these  entertain- 
ments for  the  master  of  the  feast,  in  all  cases,  to 
provide  a  wedding  garment  for  the  less  opulent  of 
his  guests;  and  if  elevated  by  rank  and  great  wealth, 

*  Isa.  Iv.  l.j  t  St.  Luke  xiii.  29.  i  Matt.  xxii.  IL 


iMARBIAGE  FEAST.  101 

to  furnish  with  these  garments  all  his  guests  indis- 
criminately. The  man,  therefore,  who  appeared 
at  the  feast  in  this  parable  without  the  customary 
garment,  had  really  no  excuse ;  and  when  censured 
for  doing  so,  we  are  told  he  was  "  speechless." 

The  insult  of  which  he  was  therefore  guilty 
towards  the  master  of  the  feast,  whose  hospitality 
he  was  partaking,  drew  forth  the  sentence, 

"  Bind  him  hand  and  foot,  and  take  him  away, 
and  cast  him  into  outer  darkness:  there  shall  be 
weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth."* 

Cast  this  guest,  who  is  guilty  of  the  gross  indig- 
nity of  rejecting  the  wedding  garment  prepared  for 
him,  from  the  light  and  splendour  of  the  scene 
which  he  disgraces  by  his  presence,  into  the  dark- 
ness of  the  highway  from  which  he  was  called. 

Here  we  behold,  under  a  striking  similitude,  the 
fearful  doom  of  those  professing  Christians  who 
think  they  shall  enjoy  the  blessings  of  Christ's 
heavenly  kingdom,  of  his  everlasting  festival  of  love, 
while  they  are  destitute  of  those  graces  and  virtues, 
that  purity  and  righteousness,  which  are  often,  in 
the  figurative  language  of  Scripture,  styled  the 
"  wedding  garment" — "  the  white  raiment  of  the 
saints."!     For 

"  Many  are  called,  but  few  are  chosen."{ 

Many  are  called  to  the  Gospel  feast — many  are 
invited  to  partake  of  its  blessings,  and  all  are 
offered,  through  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
that  righteousness  which  alone  can  qualify  them  to 
partake  of  these  blessings — "  but  few  are  chosen ;" 
comparatively  few  study  to  make  their  calling  and 
election  sure ;   to  acquire,  through  the  power  of 

*  Matt.  xxii.  13.  f  Rev.  iii,  4.  |  Matt.  xxii.  14. 


J  Og  PARABLE  OF  THE 

divine  grace,  those  holy  dispositions  and  virtueis 
which  alone  can  render  them  meet  to  be  admitted 
to  the  marriage  supper  of  the  Lamb,  to  partake  of 
the  felicities  of  heaven. 

This  parable  contains  much  important  instruc- 
tion. 

1.  It  affords  a  lively  display  of  the  mercy  and 
goodness  of  God,  in  providing  for  the  blessings  of 
redemption. 

What  scenes  more  joyous  than  those  of  a  mar- 
riage, where  rank  and  splendour  unite  to  inspire 
the  most  dignified  festivity  1  What  more  grateful 
and  exhilarating  on  this  joyful  occasion,  than  a  feast, 
where  every  luxury  that  generous  wealth  can  be- 
stow, excites  and  gratifies  the  senses '?  Behold  the 
striking  similitude  by  which  are  denoted  the  good- 
ness and  the  mercy  of  God  in  providing  the  blessings 
of  redemption.  For  man,  blind,  and  guilty,  and 
miserable,  who  was  wandering  in  the  high  way  that 
leads  to  destruction,  and  exiled  through  sin  frohn 
the  comforts  of  God's  favour,  a  feast  is  prepared. 
The  almighty  Sovereign,  whom,  by  his  wilful  trans- 
gressions, he  has  insulted  and  offended,  in  the  ful- 
ness of  infinite  love  provides  for  hitn  the  richest 
blessings.  The  offender  against  the  Majesty  of 
heaven,  he  is  offered  a  free  and  full  pardon.  The 
slave  of  error  and  of  prejudice,  whose  corrupt  rea- 
son enveloped  him  with  the  darkest  shades  of 
idolatry  and  superstition,  he  sees  the  light  of  the 
divine  glory  in  the  face  of  Jesus  Christ.  His  soul 
held  in  bondage  by  sin,  he  is  offered  a  translation 
into  the  glorious  liberty  of  the  sons  of  God.  His 
bosom  agitated  by  passions  fierce  as  the  whirlwind, 
he  is  presented  with  that  peace  of  God  which  pass- 
eth  all  understanding.    He,  who  sprung  from  the 


MARRIAGE  FEAST.  ID'S 

dust,  is  descending  to  the  dust  again,  and  may  say 
to  corruption.  Thou  art  my  father,  and  to  the  worm, 
thou  art  my  brother  and  my  sister,  beholds  pre- 
pared for  liim  a  garment  of  immortality,  an  house 
not  made  with  hands,  eternal  in  the  heavens.  And 
he,  whose  guilty  soul,  the  bottomless  pit  opens  to 
receive,  may  look,  as  his  destined  abode,  to  the 
courts  of  heaven,  to  that  city  of  the  living  God, 
where  are  joy  and  gladness,  and  from  which  sorrow 
and  sighing  flee  far  away. 

2.  The  merciful  and  gracious  God  who  prepares 
for  his  offending  creatures  blessings  so  exalted, 
urges  their  acceptance  of  these  blessings  by  the 
most  powerful  and  persuasive  methods. 

He  sent  his  only  Son  into  the  world,  that,  moved 
by  this  astonishing  instance  of  love,  guilty  man 
might  be  induced  to  accept  the  salvation  which, 
through  the  sufferings  and  death  of  this  glorious 
personage,  is  wrought  for  him.  The  word  of  in- 
spiration, affording  a  lively  display  of  all  those 
blessings  which  God  has  prepared  for  those  that 
love  him,  abounds  with  the  most  animating  calls, 
the  most  iirgent  and  tender  entreaties  to  accept 
these  blessings.  By  the  admonitions  of  conscience, 
by  the  dispensations  of  his  providence,  by  the  secret 
suggestions  of  his  Holy  Spirit,  by  the  service  of  the 
church  in  her  ministry,  sacraments,  and  ordinances, 
does  that  compassionate  God,  who  willeth  not  the 
death  of  a  sinner,  urge  and  entreat  him  to  turn  from 
those  sinful  pursuits  that  terminate  in  shame,  re- 
morse, and  misery,  and  to  partake  of  those  perma- 
nent and  exalted  joys  which  flow  from  hiin,  who  is 
the  fountain  of  life  and  felicity.  The  voice  of  their 
almighty  Sovereign  is  constantly  addressed  to  sinful 
men — "  All  things  are  ready."     Blessings  are  pre- 


1 04  PARABLE  OF  THE 

pared  for  you,  as  transcendent  in  the  enjoymeni 
which  they  afford,  as  they  are  lasting  in  duration ; 
the  light  of  divine  truth,  the  pardon  of  sin,  peace 
of  conscience,  the  comforts  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  the 
joys  of  the  divine  favour,  a  resurrection  to  glory, 
ineffable  bliss  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven  above, 
these  are  the  blessings  which  court  your  acceptance. 
Come  then  and  "  drink  of  the  waters  of  life ;"  eat 
ye  that  which  is  good,  and  let  your  soul  delight 
itself  in  fatness.  Come,  celebrate  with  angels  and 
archangels,  and  all  the  company  of  heaven,  that 
celestial  festival,  the  joys  of  which  are  pure,  trans- 
porting, and  eternal. 

In  what  manner  is  this  gracious  invitation  regarded 
among  men  ]  The  parable  before  us  affords  the 
astonishing,  the  melancholy  information — "  They 
make  light  of  it;"  they  make  light  of  the  overtures 
of  mercy  from  the  God  of  heaven;  they  make  light 
of  the  tender  invitations  of  his  eternal  Son.  "  They 
go,  one  to  his  farm,  and  another  to  his  merchan- 
dise"— they  prefer  the  sensual  pursuits  and  plea- 
sures which  too  often  corrupt  the  heart,  and  fill  it 
with  shame  and  remorse — pursuits  which  often  ter- 
minate in  vanity  and  vexation  of  spirit — pleasures 
which,  in  a  few  years,  will  vanish  in  the  darkness 
of  the  grave,  and  which,  for  a  day  or  an  hour  they, 
cannot  call  their  own,  to  those  pure  joys  of  a  good 
conscience,  those  rich  consolations  of  the  divine 
favour,  those  pleasures  in  the  presence  of  their 
God  and  Saviour  which  never  fade.  Contemning 
that  great  salvation  revealed  in  the  Gospel,  they 
too,  like  the  unbelieving  Jews  of  old,  "  trample 
under  foot  the  Son  of  God,  crucify  him  afresh,  and 
put  him  to  an  open  shame."* 

*  Heb.  X.  39. 


MARRIAGE  FEAST,  105 

These  despisers  of  God  may  behold  in  the  para- 
ble under  consideration,  the  awful  vengeance  which 
will  overtake  them.  They  may  behold  it  in  the 
denunciations  of  that  parable  executed  upon  the 
unbelieving  Jews  and  upon  impenitent  Jerusalem. 
Alas  !  the  awful  fury  which  burst  upon  Jerusalem 
and  overwhelmed  the  Jews,  is  a  sure  but  a  feeble 
emblem  of  the  vengeance  preparing  for  those  who 
despise  or  neglect  the  mercy  and  grace  of  God. 
A  great  and  terrible  day  is  coming,  when  the  sun 
s'hall  be  turned  into  blackness,  and  the  moon  into 
blood ;  when  the  elements  shall  melt  with  fervent 
heat ;  when  the  heavens  shall  depart  as  a  scroll ; 
when  the  earth  shall  be  burnt  up;  and  when,  in  the 
midst  of  these  scenes  of  terror,  the  Judge  of  the 
world  shall  appear  in  the  glory  of  his  Father,  and 
with  his  holy  angels,  to  take  vengeance  on  those  who 
believe  not  God  and  obey  not  his  Gospel.  Such  a 
day  is  predicted  ;  such  a  coming  of  the  Son  of  man 
is  foretold ;  such  awful  scenes  are  unfolded  in  the 
oracles  of  truth.  When  this  day  comes;  when  the 
Son  of  man  thus  appears  ;  when  the  last  judgment 
takes  place,  which  decides  for  ever  the  happiness 
or  misery  of  the  myriads  of  mankind ;  oh !  how 
will  all  who  now  live  unmindful  of  their  God  and 
Saviour,  neglecting  or  contemning  his  mercy  and 
his  grace,  bewail  their  guilt  and  their  folly — bewail, 
but  too  late — their  tears  and  their  cries  will  be 
those  of  endless  agony  and  despair ;  for  God  hath 
pronounced,  the  "  worm  dieth  not,"  "  the  fire  is 
not  quenched." 

But  this  instructive  parable  does  not  only  de- 
nounce vengeance  against  those  who  reject  the 
counsel  of  God  for  their  salvation ;  it  unfolds  also 
the  awful  destiny  of  nominal  Christians ;  of  those 

Vol.  III.  14 


106  PARABLE  OF  THE 

tvho  hold  the  truth  in  unrighteousness ;  who  hope 
they  shall  be  admitted  to  the  celestial  festival  of 
their  Lord  in  his  kingdom  on  high,  though  they 
are  destitute  of  the  wedding  garment,  the  righte- 
ousness of  the  saints;  who  found  their  title  to 
heaven  on  their  being  called  by  the  name  of  Christ, 
and  on  their  calling  him,  Lord,  Lord,  while  they 
are  destitute  of  his  spirit,  his  meek  and  holy  graces, 
and  neglect  to  do  the  things  which  he  commands. 
Nominal  professors  of  Chrifitianity !  you  may  read 
your  destiny  in  the  doom  pronounced  on  the  man 
in  the  parable,  who  appeared  at  the  marriage  sup- 
per, not  having  on  the  wedding  garment—"  Cast 
him  into  outer  darkness :  there  shall  be  weeping 
and  gnashing  of  teeth."*  This  will  be  the  destiny 
of  the  unholy  professors  of  the  Christian  name ; 
excluded  from  the  light,  and  peace,  and  glory  of 
heaven,  and  consigned  to  darkness  everlasting. 
Oh  !  that  unsound  and  nominal  Christietns,  alarmed 
by  the  consideration  of  the  tremendous  destiny 
which  awaits  them,  would  instantly  renounce  their 
false  hopes,  and  not  give  rest  to  their  souls,  until, 
by  prayer  and  watchfulness,  and  the  faithful  use  of 
the  means  of  grace,  they  are  adorned  with  that 
evangelical  righteousness  which  only  can  make 
them  acceptable  guests  at  the  heavenly  supper  of 
their  Lord. 

Finally,  Christian  brethren,  the  concluding  moral 
of  this  interesting  parable  should  sink  deep  into 
our  hearts. 

"  Many  are  called,  but  few  are  chosen  "f 
Many  are  called  by  the  word,  the  Spirit,  and  the 
provideace  of  God,  by  the  ministry  and  ordinances 

*  Matt.  xxli.  13.  t  Matt.  xxii.  14, 


BIARRIAGE  FEAST.  107 

of  his  holy  church,  to  the  privileges  and  blessings 
of  the  Gospel.  But,  alas!  few,  comparatively  few, 
walk  worthy  of  their  holy  vocation — comparatively 
few  improve  the  grace  freely  given  to  them,  to  the 
renewal  of  their  minds,  to  their  establishment  in 
holiness  and  virtue,  to  their  living  righteously,  so- 
berly, and  godly  in  the  world.  And  therefore,  though 
"  many  be  called"  to  the  marriage  supper  of  the 
Lamb,  though  many  are  admitted  to  the  privileges 
of  Christ's  church  on  earth,  "  few  are  chosen"  to 
sit  down  with  him  at  this  holy  and  blissful  festival: 
and  banished  from  the  presence  of  their  Lord,  with 
whom  is  light,  and  peace,  and  felicity,  their  portion 
is  in  outer  darkness — darkness  for  ever  the  dark- 
ness of  despair. 

My  brethren,  let  it  be  our  supremo  care  to  avoid 
this  tremendous  destiny.  Let  us  earnestly  implore 
him  who  is  the  Lord  of  all  power  and  might,  to 
endue  our  souls  with  that  righteousness  which  only 
can  render  us  meet  for  his  presence.  And  to  our 
earnest  supplications  let  us  add  our  zealous  and 
unremitting  endeavours  to  adorn  the  doctrine  of 
God  our  Saviour  in  all  things ;  so  that  when  our 
Lord  Cometh  to  unite  to  himself,  in  the  ties  of 
celestial  and  endless  fellowship,  the  church  of  the 
redeemed ;  when  the  awakening  invitation  is  heard 
from  the  host  of  heaven — "  Be  glad  and  rejoice,  for 
the  marriage  of  the  Lamb  is  come ;"  we  shall  be 
found  worthy  to  enter  in  and  celebrate  with  him 
the  everlasting  festival  of  love  and  of  joy. 


SERMON   X. 


THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 


Acts  x.  34,  35. 

Then  Peter  opened  his  mouth,  and  said,  Of  a  truth  I  perceive  that 
God  is  no  respecter  of  persons:  but  in  every  nation,  he  that 
feareth  him  and  worketh  righteousness,  is  accepted  with  him. 

After  that  lamentable  event  "  which  brought 
death  into  the  world  and  all  our  wo,"  all  flesh  cor- 
rupted their  way  before  God.  The  sinful  propen- 
sities of  our  fallen  nature  overcoming  the  feeble 
dictates  of  reason,  there  was  danger  that  the  know- 
ledge and  fear  of  the  great  Creator  and  Governor 
of  the  universe  would  be  totally  extinguished  in  the 
earth.  To  restore  men  from  this  moral  degradation, 
and  to  preserve  among  them  his  name,  his  worship, 
and  service,  it  pleased  God,  at  sundry  times,  to 
reveal  himself  to  the  patriarchs,  and  finally  more 
fully  to  his  chosen  people  Israel.  In  the  midst  of 
the  darkness  of  idolatry  which  overspread  the  na- 
tion, they  were  selected  to  preserve  the  knowledge 
of  the  one  living  and  true  God,  until  the  fulness  of 
time  came,  when  he  should  send  forth  his  Son  to 
proclaim  his  salvation  to  all  the  ends  of  the  earth. 

But,  as  was  natural,  from  the  pride  of  human 
nature,  the  Jews  became  elated  with  their  spiritual 
distiiioiions,  and  they  fancied  that  their  law  should 
last  for  ever.  It  was  indeed  to  be  continued  in  that 
spiritual  dispensation  which  was  to  be  the  fulfilling 


THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT.  109 

both  of  the  law  and  the  prophets,  and  to  the  bless- 
ings of  which  the  Gentiles  should  be  admitted ;  but 
they  supposed  it  was  to  be  perpetuated  in  those 
ceremonial  institutions  which  confined  God's  co- 
venant favour  to  their  own  nation.  This  restrictive 
idea  of  the  nature  and  extent  of  God's  mercy  in 
the  promised  Messiah,  was  contrary  to  the  original 
promise  to  Abraham,  that  in  his  seed  all  the  families 
of  the  earth  should  be  blessed  ;  it  was  contrary  to 
the  voice  of  the  prophets,  declaring  that  all  the 
ends  of  the  earth  should  see  the  salvation  of  God; 
yet  it  was  rigidly  cherished  by  the  Jews.  Even  the 
apostles  of  him  who  came  to  give  his  life  a  ransom 
for  all,  were  influenced  by  its  contracted  spirit; 
they  supposed  that  redemption  should  extend  only 
to  Israel,  and  that  the  fold  of  the  Messiah  was  in- 
accessible except  through  the  narrow  door  of  legal 
ceremonies. 

This  opinion  swayed  the  apostles  even  after  their 
Master  had  commissioned  them  to  preach  the  Gos- 
pel to  all  nations.  To  correct  an  error  so  funda- 
mentally opposed  to  the  design  of  the  Gospel,  a 
miraculous  vision  was  vouchsafed  to  Peter.  In  this 
vision,  under  an  emblematic  representation  of  a 
sheet  let  down  from  heaven  containing  various 
animals,  some  of  which,  according  to  the  Jewish 
law,  were  unclean,  but  which  Peter  was  directed  to 
eat,  he  was  taught  that  the  ceremonial  distinctions 
of  the  Jewish  law  were  abolished,  and  that  the 
church  of  God  was  thenceforward  opened  to  all 
nations.  As  an  evidence  of  this,  he  was  commanded 
to  attend  some  messengers  sent  to  him  from  Cor- 
nelius, a  devout  Gentile,  who  desired  to  be  taught 
the  things  belonging  to  the  kingdi^m  of  God.  Thus 
miraculously  instructed  in  God's  gracious  purpose 


110  THE  RULE  OP  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 

to  grant  to  the  Gentiles  repentance  unto  life,  Peter 
opened  his  discourse  with  Cornelius  in  the  words 
of  my  text — "  Of  a  truth  I  perceive  that  God  is  no 
respecter  of  persons :  but  in  every  nation,  he  that 
feareth  hitn  and  worketh  righteousness,  is  accepted 
with  him." 

Here  then,  brethren,  we  behold  the  important 
character  in  which  God  will  judge  mankind,  and 
the  impartial  rule  by  which  he  will  determine  his 
favour  to  them. 

The  statement  of  the  doctrine  contained  in  the 
text,  the  proof  of  it,  and  the  inferences  deducible 
from  it,  must  be  particulars  interesting  to  us  all, 
and  shall  be  the  object  of  the  following  discourse. 

The  text  declares  the  general  truth,  that  God  is 
no  respecter  of  persons;  but  that  he  accepts  men 
according  to  the  fear  and  service  which  they  render 
him.  This  principle  may  be  considered  in  its  ap- 
plication to  those  destitute  of  the  light  of  the  Gospel, 
and  to  those  who  enjoy  its  light. 

"  God  is  no  respecter  of  persons."    All  men  de- 
riving their  being  from  him,  and  equally  dependent 
upon  him,  he  considers  them  as  equally  his  children, 
and  deals  with  them  all  by  an  impartial  rule — the 
fear  and  service  which  they  render  him.     No  ex- 
ternal qualifications  or  advantages  which  men  pos- 
sess, in  any  degree  influence  the  decisions  of  the 
holy  and  just  Governor  of  the  universe  concerning 
their  spiritual  state.     No  descent  from  any  parti- 
cular nation,  however  distinguished  by  his  temporal 
favours,  on  which  descent  the  Jews  prided  them- 
selves, will  affect  his  just  determination  concerning 
their  spiritual  character.    Nor  does  he  regulate  his 
final  favour  to  mankind  merely  by  his  arbitrary 


THE  RULE  OP  FINAL  JUDGMENT.  Ill 

pleasure.  As  it  respects,  indeed,  the  spiritual  pri- 
vileges which  he  confers  on  men  in  this  life,  he 
exercises  the  power  of  the  potter  over  his  clay,  to 
"  create  one  vessel  to  honour,  and  another  to  dis- 
honour."* He  pours  on  some  the  full  splendour  of 
Gospel  truth,  while  he  dispenses  to  others  only 
the  faint  light  of  reason  and  nature.  Still,  in  every 
nation,  they  that  fear  him  and  work  righteousness, 
according  to  the  measure  of  religious  knowledge 
and  aid  which  they  enjoy,  are  accepted  with  him. 
"  The  Judge  of  the  whole  earth  will  do  right." 
The  moral  qualities  of  his  intelligent  creatures  are 
the  only  standard  by  which  he  will  finally  regulate 
his  favours  to  them.  "  He  will  judge  every  man 
according  as  his  work  shall  be."t 

Let  us  apply  this  general  principle  to  those 
destitute  of  the  light  of  the  Gospel.  The  state  of 
the  heathen  world  excites  many  interesting  inqui- 
ries in  the  benevolent  mind;  and  the  text  satisfies 
these  inquiries,  by  declaring  the  standard  by  which 
God  will  judge  those  to  whom  it  has  not  pleased 
him  to  vouchsafe  his  revealed  will.  He  accepts 
them  according  to  the  fear  and  service  which  they 
render  him.  If  they  cultivate  the  knowledge  of  him 
which  they  have  received  from  tradition,  and  which 
nature,  and  reason,  and  conscience,  confirm ;  if 
adoring  his  power  who  made  the  universe,  they  fear 
to  offend  him  who  is  as  omnipotent  to  destroy  as 
he  is  to  save ;  if  rendering  homage  to  his  goodness, 
they  devote  themselves  to  him  in  whom  they  live, 
and  move,  and  have  their  being ;  if  obeying  his 
voice  speaking  to  them  through  the  dictates  of 
reason  and  conscience,  it  is  their  study,  as  far  as 

*  Rom.  ix.  21.  t  Rev.  xx.  18. 


112  THE  RULE  OP  PINAL  JUDGMENT. 

the  infirmity  of  their  nature  will  admit,  to  "  work 
righteousness,"  they  will  be  accepted  by  that  mer- 
ciful Parent  whose  creatures  and  children  they  are. 
God  will  judge  them  independently  of  those  disad- 
vantages over  which  they  have  no  control ;  he  will 
accept  them    according  as   their   work   shall   be. 
Cornelius  was  an  alien  from  the  commonwealth  of 
Israel,  and  a  stranger  to  the  covenant  of  promise  ; 
he  lived  among  those  Gentile  nations  who,  when 
compared  with  the  light  which  shone  upon  Israel, 
may  be  said  to  have  sitten  in  darkness  and  the 
shadow  of  death,  yet  he  is  styled  "  a  devout  man, 
one  who  feared  God  with  all  his  house,  and  gave 
much    alms   to  the    people,  and    prayed    to    God 
alway."*   And  because  he  was  thus  pious  and  holy, 
though  he  was  not  in  external  covenant  with  God, 
he  was  accepted — "  his  prayers  and  his  alms  came 
up  for  a  memorial."t     He  was  accepted  before  the 
offer  of  the  Gospel  was  made  to  him.     And  he  was 
still  further  accepted,  by  being  received,  through 
the  miraculous  ministry  of  Peter,  into  the  Christian 
fold.     Here  he  enjoyed  superior  means  of  virtue, 
superior  spiritual  aid,  and  the  prospect  of  superior 
reward.     In  the  present  state  of  the  world,  there 
are  large  portions  of  mankind  who,  like  Cornelius, 
are  aliens  from  the  commonwealth  of  Israel,  and 
strangers  to  the  covenant  of  promise.    Destitute  of 
the  light  of  divine  truth,  of  the  knowledge  of  a 
Saviour,  of  the  means  of  grace,  of  the  hope  of  glory, 
their  spiritual  condition  is  more  deplorable  than 
was  that  of  Cornelius.     From  his  vicinity  to  God's 
favoured  people,  to  whom  appertained  the  adoption, 
and  the  covenant,  and  the  giving  of  the  law,  and 

*  Acts  X.  2.  t  Acts  X.  4. 


THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT.  113 

the  promises,  he  possessed  means  of  spiritual  in- 
struction far  superior  to  those  now  enjoyed  by- 
vast  portions  of  the  heathen  world.  Still  it  is  true 
at  the  present  day,  that  in  every  nation,  even  though 
destitute  of  God's  revealed  will,  they  who  fear  him 
and  work  righteousness  are  accepted  with  him  ; 
they  are  accepted  through  the  merits  of  the  Lamb 
slain  from  the  foundation  of  the  world,  of  that 
Saviour  who  gave  himself  a  ransom  for  all.  Ob- 
scure, and  in  many  respects  erroneous,  is  their 
knowledge  of  the  God  who  made  and  preserves 
them ;  superstitious  and  imperfect  is  the  homage 
which  they  render  him ;  feeble  and  partial  are  the 
intimations  of  duty  afforded  by  natural  conscience, 
by  the  glimmering  light  of  reason  and  tradition; 
in  them  too  the  Divine  Spirit,  given  only  in  an 
inferior  measure,  exerts  only  in  an  inferior  degree 
his  life-giving  power ;  the  hope  of  immortality,  ex- 
cited only  by  the  dubious  deductions  of  reason  and 
the  uncertain  dictates  of  their  feelings,  sheds  only 
a  faint  light  on  the  darkness  of  the  grave.  Oh  I 
how  precious  to  Christians  should  be  that  blessed 
Gospel  which  displays  in  full  lustre,  and  rests  on 
the  testimony  of  God  himself,  these  most  interest- 
ing truths — how  distinguished' the  privileges  of 
Christians  on  whom  has  shone  the  glory  of  God  in 
the  face  of  Jesus  Christ — and  how  earnestly  should 
they  desire  and  labour  to  extend  to  the  benighted 
nations,  that  Gospel  which  enlightens  with  divine 
truth  the  path  of  this  life,  and  prepares  those  who 
obey  it  for  more  exalted  glory  in  the  life  to  come. 
Still  God  the  Father  is  no  respecter  of  persons ; 
and,  therefore,  in  whatever  degree  the  unenlight- 
ened heathen  know,  fear,  and  serve  him,  thus  far 
they  will  be  accepted — thus  far  they  will  be  re- 
VoL.  III.  15 


114  niE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 

warded.  For  where  a  man  has  a  willing  mind,  he- 
rs accepted  according  to  what  he  has,  and  not 
according  to  what  he  has  not. 

There  is  another  particular  in  which,  personally, 
we  are  more  deeply  concerned.  What  is  God's 
rule  of  judgment  concerning  those  who  enjoy  the 
light  of  the  GospeH  Here  it  is  equally  true  that 
God  is  no  respecter  of  persons. 

Where  the  Gospel  is  proclaimed,  he  has  offered 
to  all  men  a  Saviour ;  through  the  atonement  of 
this  Saviour  salvation  is  attainable  by  them  all— 
the  means  of  grace  are  within  the  embrace  of  all — 
the  hope  of  glory  is  offered  to  them  all — all  may 
come  and  drink  of  the  waters  of  life — all  may, 
through  faith  and  patience,  inherit  the  promises. 
And  under  the  Gospel  dispensation,  as  under  the 
light  of  reason  and  nature,  the  standard  by  which 
all  men  shall  be  judged  is  their  fearing  God  and 
working  righteousness.  More,  much  more  than 
will  be  exacted  of  virtuous  heathens,  will  be  re- 
quired of  those  who  enjoy  the  light  of  the  Gospel. 
To  them  a  Saviour  is  proclaimed,  the  only-begotten 
Son  of  God,  full  of  grace  and  truth,  and  they  must 
from  the  heart  believe  in  him.  This  divine  Saviour 
brings  a  message,  which,  recooimended  by  its  own 
interesting  import,  is  attested  by  signs,  and  won- 
ders, and  mighty  works ;  that  God  is  reconciling 
the  world  unto  himself,  and  they  must  thankfully 
receive  the  message  of  reconciliation.  The  atone- 
ment of  this  Saviour  is  revealed  as  the  only  meri- 
torious condition  on  which  God,  who  has  a  right  to 
prescribe  what  terms  of  pardon  he  pleases  to  his 
offending  creatures,  will  vouchsafe  to  restore  them 
to  his  favour;  and  on  this  atonement  they  must 


THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT.  115   Jjptf 

supremely  rely ;  counting  their  best  performances 
and  their  most  brilliant  virtues  as  wholly  unavail- 
ing to  obtain,  on  a  claim  of  right,  either  the  pardon 
of  their  sins  or  the  glories  of  heaven.     The  grace 
of  God's  Holy  Spirit  is  revealed  as  the  powerful 
agent  by  whieh  their  corrupt  nature  is  to  be  re- 
newed, their  unholy  passions  subdued,  divine  virtues 
implanted  in  their  souls,  and  good  works  produced 
in  their  conduct ;  and  this  grace,  therefore,  must  be 
their  supreme  dependence ;  its  powerful  succours 
they  must  seek  to  obtain  by  earnest  prayer,  £uid  by 
the  participation  of  the  divine  ordinances  appointed 
to  convey  it;  working  powerfully  on  their  minds, 
and  yet  to  be  known  only  by  its  fruits,  this  divine 
spirit   must   be  cherished  as   the  only  source   of 
spiritual  life  ;  and  by  co-operation  with  its  gracious 
influences  must  they  seek  to  be    transformed  by 
the  renewing  of  tbeir  mind,  and  to  be  made  per- 
fect in  every  good  word  and  work.     A  church  is 
established,  through  which,  as  the  body  of  Christ, 
communion  is  to  be  maintained  with  him,  its  divine 
head.     In  this  church  sacraments  and  ordinances 
are  established  as  the  channels  of  his  mercy  and 
grace ;  officers  set  over  this  church,  deriving  their 
power  from  Christ,  its  divine  head,  dispense  the 
word  of  his  truth,  and  celebrate   the   means   and 
pledges  of  his  grace  and  mercy;    and   unto  this 
church  all  they  to  whom  the  Gospel   is  proclaimed 
must  be  added,  if,  according  to  God's  ordinary  and 
established  method,  they  would  be  saved ;  by  hear- 
ing the  word  and  participating  of  the  ordinances 
duly  preached  and  celebrated   by  the   authorized 
ministry  of  this  church,  must  they  derive  from  its 
divine  head  spiritual   strength  and    nourishment, 
until  at  length  they  are  fitted  to  see  him  face  to 


116  THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 

face  in  the  glories  of  the  church  triumphant.     To 
them  life  and  immortality  are  brought  to  light; 
darkness  is  dispelled  from  the  grave  by  the  divine 
Redeemer,  who  passed  in  glory  through  it;   it  is 
become  the  passage  to  seats  of  immortal  bliss.    As 
heirs  of  this  heaven,  Christians  are  called  to  live  on 
earth  as  strangers  and  pilgrims ;  refreshed  by  the 
enjoyments  of  the  world,  but  not  setting  their  affec- 
tions supremely  upon  them ;  and  pressing  forward 
through  all  discouragements,  through  all  difficulties, 
through  all  temptations,  to  that  home  which  is  pre- 
pared for  them,  eternal  in  the  heavens.    Thus  must 
they  to  whom  the  Gospel  is  proclaimed  fear  God, 
by  humbly  receiving  the  record  which  he  has  given 
them  of  his  Son ;  thus  must  they  work  righteousness 
according  to  the  precepts,  the  means,  and  the  mo- 
tives unfolded  by  that  Saviour  in  whom  they  are 
commanded  to  Relieve.   Vain  will  be  their  pretence 
of  fearing  God,  while  they  reject  him  whom  God 
has  sent ;  vain  will  be  their  pretence  of  working 
righteousness,  while  they  neglect  that  Gospel  which 
affords  the  full  rules,  the  spotless  example,  and  the 
most  powerful  aids  and  motives  to  virtue.     But 
while  they  fear  God  by  receiving  his  blessed  Son 
as  their  Saviour,  and  work  righteousness,  guided 
by  the  principles,  strengthened   by  the   aids,  and 
animated  by  the  motives  there  revealed,  they  will 
be  accepted.     No  worldly  circumstances  will  affect 
God's  impartial  judgment.     Jew  and  Greek,  Bar- 
barian, Scythian,  bond  and  free,  are  all  invited  to 
partake  of  the  blessings  of  the  Gospel ;    and  the 
standard   by   which   they  shall  be   judged   to   be 
qualified  for  these  blessings,  is  their  fearing  God 
and  working  righteousness.     No  unconditional  de- 
cree, selecting  certain  individuals  to  everlasting 


THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT.  ]  17 

life,  and  reprobating  others,  disgraces  the  records 
of  heaven,  and  transforms  the  sceptre  of  mercy  into 
the  tyrant's  rod.  God's  will  is  that  all  men  shouhl 
be  saved — he  will  judge  them  as  their  work  shall  be 
— he  is  no  respecter  of  persons. 

The  proof  of  this  important  truth,  which,  in  its 
application  to  those  who  are  destitute  of  the  light 
of  the  Gospel,  and  to  those  who  enjoy  it,  has  been 
thus  exhibited,  cannot  be  difficult. 

To  represent  God  as  a  respecter  of  persons, 
awarding  his  final  favour  to  mankind  by  an  arbitrary 
standard,  or  by  a  capricious  and  partial  judgment, 
would  equally  violate  his  attributes,  and  be  deroga- 
tory to  his  character. 

It  would  violate  his  attributes — his  justice,  which 
renders  to  all  their  impartial  due — his  holiness, 
which  regards  with  favour  the  righteous  only — his 
goodness,  which  prompts  him  to  bestow  heippiness 
on  those  only  capable  and  worthy  of  enjoying  it — 
and  his  truth,  which  is  pledged  to  judge  every  man 
according  to  what  he  hath  done,  whether  it  be  good 
or  bad. 

To  represent  God  as  a  respecter  of  persons, 
would  also  be  derogatory  to  his  character.  He  iss 
the  Father,  the  Sovereign,  the  Judge  of  his  crea- 
tures. 

An  earthly  parent  would  deserve  opprobrium, 
who  should  regulate  his  favours  to  his  children  by 
any  other  standard  than  their  respective  deserts : 
let  us  not  then  attribute  to  the  Parent  of  the  uni- 
verse what  would  be  disgraceful  in  a  human  parent. 
An  earthly  sovereign,  who  should  dispense  his  fa- 
vours to  his  subjects,  not  according  to  their  merits, 
but  as  oaprice  or  power  might  dictate,  would  be 
deemed  a  tyrant ;  and  shall  we  ascribe  to  God, 


il8  THE  RULE  OP  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 

the  Sovereign  of  the  universe,  what  virould  be  dis- 
graceful in  a  human  sovereign  1  We  should  deem 
an  earthly  judge  deserving  of  the  severest  crimina- 
tion, who,  in  his  decisions,  should  be  swayed  by 
partiality,  or  by  caprice,  or  by  any  other  motives 
than  those  of  impartial  justice :  and  shall  we  im- 
pute to  the  righteous  Judge  of  all,  what  would  be 
dishonourable  in  a  judge  of  a  human  tribunal^ 
Father  of  our  spirits  !  Sovereign  of  the  universe  ! 
Judge  of  the  earth !  let  us  not  then  sink  thee  to  a 
level  with  the  most  unworthy  of  our  race.  No ! 
thou  art  no  respecter  of  persons.  They  who  fear 
thee  and  work  righteousness,  shall  be  accepted  with 
thee. 

The  inferences  from  the  truth  now  explained  and 
established,  are  many  and  important. 

The  doctrine  contained  in  the  text  removes  the 
imputations  which  are  sometimes  cast  upon  them, 
from  the  inequality  of  his  dispensations  to  man- 
kind. 

We  behold  a  large  portion  of  the  human  race 
destitute  of  the  blessings  of  the  Gospel :  they  have 
Kot  heard  a  Saviour's  name,  nor  have  their  ears 
rejoiced  in  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation  through  a 
Saviour's  merits.  Does  this  appear  an  imputation 
on  the  goodness  and  justice  of  the  Governor  of  the 
universe  1  No  ;  he  is  still  good  and  just — he  is  still 
no  respecter  of  persons  :  he  has  extended  the 
merits,  though  not  the  name,  of  his  blessed  Son  to 
all  mankind,  so  as  to  make  salvation  possible  to 
all  those  who  fear  him  and  work  righteousness. 
And  in  applying  this  standard  to  the  virtuous  hea- 
then, he  will  judge  them  according  to  what  they 
have,  and  not  according  to  what  they  have  not.  As 
of  old,  it  is  said  that  God  "  winked  at,"  excused 


THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT.  119 

*'  those  times  of  ignorance"  when  men  deformed 
his  worship  by  the  rites  of  idolatry  and  superstition  ; 
we  may,  therefore,  reasonably  conclude  that  he  will 
not  be  strict  to  mark  what  is  done  amiss  in  those 
dark  corners  of  the  earth  where  the  light  of  his 
Gospel  has  not  shone,  and  where,  of  course,  be- 
nighted man  has  no  means  of  knowing,  in  the  full 
lustre  of  his  attributes,  that  one  living  and  true 
God  who  must  be  worshipped  in  spirit  and  in 
truth.  Nor  will  God  reap  where  he  has  not  sown 
— he  will  not  exact  from  those  who  sit  in  darkness^, 
who  enjoy  only  the  feeble  intimations  of  his  being, 
worship,  and  will,  discoverable  by  the  obscure 
lights  of  tradition,  of  reason,  and  of  conscience, 
the  same  spiritual  improvements  which  he  will 
exact  of  those  who  are  blessed  with  the  full  reve- 
lation of  his  glory  in  Jesus  Christ ;  and  as  the 
virtue  of  the  heathen  must  necessarily  be  far  in- 
ferior to  that  of  the  Christian,  so,  according  to  the 
rules  of  justice,  will  be  his  final  reward.  This  is 
no  imputation  on  God's  goodness  ;  he  has  a  just 
right  to  do  what  he  will  with  his  own.  In  the 
exercise  of  this  right  he  renders  his  intelligent 
creatures  capable  of  different  degrees  of  virtue  and 
happiness.  This  is  no  infringement  on  his  good- 
ness, for  he  deals  with  them  according  to  the  im- 
provement which  they  make  of  the  advantage  that 
they  enjoy.  The  source  of  goodness,  he  diffuses 
felicity  in  various  degrees  through  the  countless 
orders  of  intelligent  beings.  He  thus,  powerfully 
illustrating  his  glory  in  the  variety  of  his  works, 
and  yet  making  all  his  virtuous  creatures  happy  in 
proportion  to  their  various  capacities,  establishes 
his  justice.  Angels,  pure  and  celestial  spirits,  are 
created  capable  of  jbigher  happiness  than  man ;  and 


120  THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 

even  among  celestial  spirits,  as  among  men,  one  star 
cliftereth  from  another  star  in  glory.  The  seraph 
who  bows  in  adoration  near  the  throne,  enjoys 
fuller  communications  of  the  divine  glory  than  the 
ministering  spirit  who  worships  at  a  humbler  dis- 
tance. God  then  will  accept,  through  the  merits 
of  his  Son,  those  among  the  heathen  who  fear  him 
and  work  righteousness,  according  to  the  means 
which  they  enjoy  and  the  light  which  he  vouchsafes 
them.  They  are  destitute  of  many  advantages  which 
Christians  enjoy,  in  being  deprived  of  that  Gospel 
which  would  dispel  all  tlieir  darkness,  their  doubts, 
and  fears,  and  rendering  them  capable  of  higher 
virtue,  would  also  render  them  capable  of  higher 
bliss  ;  and  our  exertions  should  be  united  with  our 
prayers,  that  God's  "  way  may  be  known  upon 
earth,  his  saving  health  among  all  nations."*  But 
to  make  salvation  absolutely  impossible  to  the  hea- 
then— to  doom  them  to  eternal  perdition,  because 
they  have  not  believed  in  a  Saviour  who  was  never 
made  known  to  them,  is  no  doctrine  of  our  church  ; 
for,  though  she  condemns  those  who  assert  that 
men  may  be  saved  according  to  the  law  which  they 
profess,  independently  of  the  merits  of  Christ,  yet, 
in  declaring  that  he  made  an  atonement  for  the  sins 
of  the  whole  world,  both  original  and  actual,  she  is 
of  course  led  to  maintain  that  God  is  no  respecter 
of  persons,  but  accepts,  in  every  nation,  those  that 
fear  him  and  work  righteousness. 

Another  inference  from  this  important  truth  is, 
that  the  guilt  of  those  must  be  aggravated,  and  their 
punishment  severe,  who,  where  the  Gospel  is  pro- 
claimed, reject  or  neglect  it. 

*  Psalm  Ixvii.  3. 


THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT.  121 

Can  they  plead  that,  notwithstanding  their  neg- 
lect or  rejection  of  the  Gospel,  they  still  fear  God 
and  work  righteousness  !  What  must  be  that/ear 
of  God  which  rejects  the  record  that  God  has  given 
of  his  Son  ;  which  ranks  among  the  tricks  of  kna- 
very, or  the  delusions  of  superstition,  those  mighty 
sififns  and  wonders  that  attested  the  mission  of  the 
Son  of  God ;  which  hesitates  not  to  brand  as  an 
impostor  him  whom  the  Father  hath  glorified  and 
sent  into  the  world !  What  must  be  that  righte- 
ousness which  daringly  violates  the  command  of 
God  to  believe  on  his  Son ;  which  disclaims  those 
exalted  means  of  piety  and  virtue  afforded  in  the 
revelation  of  Jesus  Christ,  and  which,  under  the 
pretence  of  doing  the  will  of  God  as  obscurely 
intimated  by  the  lights  of  reason  and  conscience, 
opposes  that  will  clearly  and  forcibly  proclaimed 
from  heaven;  teaching  men  to  deny  ungodliness 
and  worldly  lusts,  and  to  live  righteously,  soberly, 
and  godly  in  the  world?  Surely  if  justice  be  an 
attribute  of  the  Governor  of  the  universe,  signal 
must  be  the  punishment  of  those  who  contemn  his 
authority,  who  reject  his  merciful  counsel  for  their 
salvation,  the  rules  of  righteousness,  the  messages 
of  peace,  the  gl6ries  of  eternity !  Even  they  who 
despised  his  law  proclaimed  by  Moses,  who  was 
but  his  servant,  perished ;  of  how  much  sorer  pun- 
ishment shall  they  be  thought  worthy  who  trample 
under  foot  the  Son  of  God,  and  count  the  blood  of 
the  covenant  an  unholy  thing! 

But,  my  Christian  brethren,  aggravated  also  will 
be  our  guilt,  and  severe  our  punishment,  if,  while 
we  profess  to  believe  in  the  revelation  of  the  will 
of  God  contained  in  the  Gospel,  we  do  not  fear 
him  nor  work  righteousness. 

Vol.  III.  16 


122  THE  RULE  OF  FINAL  JUDGMENT. 

The  luminous  pages  of  God's  written  word,  de- 
lineating our  duty  and  exciting  us  to  perform  it, 
lie  open  before  us.  The  interesting  truths,  the  holy 
laws,  the  powerful  aids,  the  cheering  promises,  the 
awful  threatenings  of  this  word,  are  constantly  pro- 
mulgated to  us.  The  ordinances  of  the  church,  en- 
forcing holiness,  dispensing  grace,  offering  mercy, 
are  administered  before  us.  God  calls  us  in  the 
warnings  of  his  providence  and  the  strivings  of 
his  Holy  Spirit :  he  calls  us  to  receive  his  counsel, 
to  hearken  to  his  reproof.  He,  the  Son  of  God, 
manifest  in  the  flesh,  who  died  to  redeem  us  from 
the  sorrows  and  sins  of  the  world,  invites  us  to 
follow  him,  to  be  like  him  holy,  that  with  him  we 
maybe  for  ever  happy.  Heaven  displays  its  glories 
' — hell  unfolds  its  terrors.  If  thus  urged,  invited, 
warned,  we  do  not  fear  God  and  work  righteous- 
ness, reason  will  brand  our  conduct  with  shame  ; 
conscience  will  fix  on  it  thu  stain  of  the  blackest 
ingratitude,  folly,  and  guilt :  and  he  whose  name 
we  have  dishonoured,  will  finally,  as  the  Judge  of 
the  world,  seal  our  eternal  condemnation.  For 
assuredly  a  day  is  approaching,  when,  in  the  ever- 
lasting bliss  assigned  to  the  righteous,  and  the 
everlasting  misery  allotted  to  the  wicked,  the  truth 
will  be  proclaimed  with  awful  power — "  God  is  no 
respecter  of  persons  :  but  in  every  nation,  they  only 
who  fear  him  and  work  righteousness,  are  accepted 
f/lih  him." 


SERMON   XL 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 


Matt.  xxii.  14. 
For  many  are  called,  but  fevv  are  chosen. 

This  solemn  admonition  of  our  blessed  Lord 
was  delivered  at  the  conclusion  of  a  parable,  in 
which,  under  the  appropriate  fi<Ture  of  a  marriage 
feast,  he  set  forth  the  blessings  of  the  Gospel ;  the 
earnest  calls  of  God  to  mankind  to  accept  these 
blessings;  the  rejection  of  these  calls  by  some,  and 
the  forfeiture  by  others,  of  the  blessings  promised. 
One  had  married  a  wife,  another  went  to  his  farm, 
and  another  to  his  merchandise.  The  pleasures, 
or  the  cares,  or  the  business  of  the  world,  induced 
many  to  reject  the  Gospel  call.  And  many  of  those 
who  regarded  and  accepted  it,  were  not  finally 
chosen,  were  not  finally  advanced  to  the  participation 
of  its  eternal  joys,  because  they  wanted  the  wedding 
garment — that  spiritual  righteousness  which  is  an 
indispensable  qualification  for  the  enjoyment  of  the 
holy  presence  of  God  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven. 

Who  are  the  called  1     And 

Who  are  the  chosen  1 

Are  the  inquiries  which  my  text  naturally  leads 
us  to  consider. 

In  a  general  sense,  all  men  are  called  to  the 
service  of  God :  they  are  all  bound  by  the  law  of 
their  nature  to  serve   him  who  is  the  gracious 


124 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 


Author  of  their  being:  they  owe  him  gratitude 
as  their  Preserver  and  Benefactor,  who  gives  them 
richly  all  things  to  enjoy:  they  are  all  amenable 
to  him  as  the  omniscient  and  almighty  Judge  of 
the  universe  which  he  has  made. 

Thus  bound  to  obey  the  Being  who  made,  pre- 
serves, and  blesses,  and  who  is  finally  to  judge 
them,  it  would  be  contrary  to  every  idea  which 
reason  can  form  of  bis  benevolence  and  justice,  to 
suppose  that  he  has  left  his  reasonable  and  ac- 
countable creatures  entirely  ignorant  of  his  glorious 
attributes,  and  of  the  service  which  they  are  re- 
quired to  render  him.  No;  the  word  of  God  on 
this  point  harmonizes  with  the  voice  of  reason.  It 
represents  the  Almighty  as  the  benevolent  Father 
of  the  whole  human  race,  and  as  accepting,  in  every 
nation,  those  who  fear  him  and  work  righteousness, 
according  to  the  measure  of  natural  light  or  Gospel 
grace  vouchsafed  to  them.  "  Jesus  Christ"  his 
eternal  Son,  who  undertook  the  work  of  propitiat- 
ing divine  justice,  oftended  by  man's  transgression, 
is  held  forth  in  that  blessed  Gospel  which  he  pro- 
mulgated, not  only  as  "  the  Saviour  of  those  who 
believe,"  but  as  "  the  Saviour  of  all  meny  "  Jesus 
Christ,"  says  the  apostle,  "  is  the  Saviour  of  all 
men,  especially  of  them  that  believe."*  Through 
the  infinite  efficacy  of  his  merits,  and  influences  of 
his  grace,  salvation  is  rendered  possible  to  those 
who,  though  they  never  heard  of  his  name,  seek  ta 
obey,  according  to  the  measure  of  light  which  they 
have  received,  that  supreme  Lord  who  hath  given 
them  life,  and  breatli,  and  all  things.  God,  the 
gracious  Father  of  mankind,  calls  them  all  to  his 
fear  and  service. 

*  1  Tim.  iv.  10. 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN.       125 

He  calls  them  by  that  primeval  revelation  of  his 
being",  attributes,  and  will,  which,  though  obscured 
by  error  and  disfigured  by  superstition,  has  been 
extended  throughout  the  earth,  and  handed  down 
through  all  ages. 

He  calls  them  by  the  voice  of  nature,  bearing 
testimony  in  all  her  works  to  the  existence,  the 
attributes,  and  will  of  that  almighty  Lord,  the 
knowledge  of  whom  universal  tradition  had  thus 
preserved. 

He  calls  them  by  the  voice  of  conscience,  the 
law  written  on  the  heart,  prompting  to  good  and 
restraining  from  evil. 

He  calls  them  by  the  monitions  of  his  Spirit,  ex- 
erting in  their  hearts  its  secret  but  powerful  sway. 

Thus  does  the  gracious  Father  of  mankind  call 
them  all  to  his  fear  and  service.  No  nation,  how- 
ever enveloped  in  ignorance,  or  debased  by  super- 
stition and  vice,  has  totally  extinguished  the  know- 
ledge of  a  supreme  Maker  and  Lord  of  all  things. 
His  being,  attributes,  and  will,  at  first  proclaimed 
by  revelation,  have  been  preserved  by  tradition,  and 
confirmed  by  the  voice  of  reason,  of  nature,  and  of 
conscience. 

Even  in  the  wilderness  you  behold  the  savage 
bowing  in  adoration  before  the  great  Spirit  whom 
his  fathers  worshipped ;  who  hath  spread  before 
him  the  extended  fowst ;  who  rewards  with  success 
his  labours  in  the  chase ;  who  preserves  him  through 
the  summer's  heat,  and  through  the  winter's  cold  ; 
and  who  has  provided  for  him,  beyond  the  distant 
horizon  that  bounds  his  view,  a  country  of  rest  and 
peace.  Enter  the  temples  embellished  by  the  arts, 
and  celebrated  in  the  strains  of  pagan  genius ;  in 
the  incense  that  ascends  from  the  censers  of  their 


126  THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 

worshippers,  in  the  blood  of  the  victims  immolated 
on  their  altars,  you  behold  the  marks  of  homage  to 
the  divinities  who  rule  the  destinies  of  men  ;  you 
hear  the  acknowledgment  of  guilt  seeking  to  pro- 
pitiate the  offended  justice  of  heaven ;  yo*a  see 
efforts  to  secure  the  favour  of  that  great  Being 
who  has  prepared,  they  hope,  a  place  of  happiness 
for  the  virtuous,  and  they  fear,  a  place  of  misery 
for  the  wicked.  Yes — feeble  as  was  the  light  that 
dawned  through  pagan  darkness,  it  was  yet  a  light 
which  disclosed  a  portion  of  the  attributes  and  will 
of  the  Lord  of  the  universe  ;  which  even  darted 
some  faint  rays  through  the  darkness  of  the  tomb, 
and  opened  the  obscure  indeed,  but  cheering  pros- 
pect of  scenes  of  immortality  and  bliss. 

When  we  contemplate  the  delineations  of  piety 
and  virtue  contained  in  the  writings  of  some  hea- 
then moralists  ;  when  our  hearts  glow  with  admira- 
tion at  the  exalted  characters  among  them  who 
sought  to  know  and  to  serve  the  divine  Author  of 
their  being,  not  alas !  with  Christian  faith  and  hope, 
but  with  Christian  sincerity  and  zeal — we  behold 
evidences  of  the  truth  declared  in  the  volume  of 
inspiration,  that  "God  never  left  himself  without 
witness,"  but  by  the  voice  of  nature,  of  reason,  of 
conscience,  and  of  his  secret  spirit,  calls  all  men  to 
serve  him,  whose  offspring  they  are,  whose  good- 
ness made,  and  whose  power  protects  them. 

But,  my  brethren,  feeble  are  the  calls  of  natural 
reason,  of  traditional  religion,  of  uncovenanted 
grace ;  imperfect  must  be  the  degree  of  holiness 
which  can  be  attained  by  the  light  and  aids  which 
they  afford,  and  inferior  the  rewards  that  will  be 
bestowed  hereafter  on  the  imperfect  virtue  which 
has  not  been  cherished  by  the  grace  of  the  GospeL 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN.  127 

Cause  then  of  the  liveliest  gratitude  have  they 
to  whom  that  Gospel  is  proclaimed,  that  they  are 
called  by  a  voice  more  clear,  more  impressive,  more 
awful,  and  yet  more  inviting — the  voice  of  God  in 
his  holy  word,  in  the  ministry^  and  in  the  sacra- 
ments and  ordinances  of  his  church. 

Compared  with  the  full  disclosures  made  in  God's 
holy  word  of  his  attributes  and  will,  with  the  awful 
denunciations  there  exhibited  against  vice,  and  the 
alluring  invitations  there  urged  to  virtue,  obscure 
indeed  appears  the  light  of  reason,  and  feeble  the 
remonstrances  of  natural  conscience.  This  holy 
word  calls  us  to  render  homage  to  the  Father  of 
our  spirits,  not  with  that  sensual  worship  into  which 
unenlightened  reason  degenerated,  but  in  spirit  and 
in  truth.  It  calls  us  to  the  service,  not  of  a  being 
whose  nature,  character,  and  attributes  are  but 
faintly  discovered  by  the  lights  of  reason  and  tra- 
dition, but  of  that  Jehovah  who  has  proclaimed 
himself  in  majesty  and  power  as  the  Maker,  the 
Preserver,  the  Governor,  and  the  Judge  of  the 
universe,  glorious  in  holiness,  inflexible  in  justice, 
and  yet  infinite  in  love.  This  holy  word  calls  us 
to  walk  not  in  a  path  of  duty  on  which  reason  casts 
but  a  glimmering  light,  but  in  the  way  of  God's 
commandments,  where  every  virtue  is  displayed  in 
celestial  radiance,  and  every  duty  exhibited  in  its 
full  obligation,  excellence,  and  rewards. 

The  Christian,  depressed  by  the  sense  of  guilt 
and  infirmity,  is  not  left  to  the  feeble  suggestions 
of  nature;  he  is  cheered  by  the  divine  voice  which 
proclaims  that  there  is  a  Lamb  of  God  which  taketh 
away  the  sin  of  the  world ;  that  there  is  a  Saviour 
provided  for  him,  infinite  in  compassion  as  mighty 
in  power,  who  hath  promised  deliverance  to  the 


128  THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 

captives,  and  rest  to  the  heavy  laden .  No  longer 
trembling  at  the  unappeased  justice  of  heaven;  no 
longer  held  in  awful  suspense  on  the  interesting 
question — how  God  can  be  just,  and  yet  justify  the 
sinner — he  is  called  to  believe  in  a  Saviour  who 
hath  brought  him  near  who  was  once  afar  off,  and 
propitiating  divine  justice,  sealed  mercy  on  the 
throne  of  God.  In  the  calls  of  God's  holy  word, 
the  Christian,  assailed  by  the  temptations  and  over- 
whelmed by  the  sorrows  of  life,  hears  the  divine 
voice  of  consolation — all  things  shall  work  together 
for  your  good.  No  longer,  like  the  unenlightened 
heathen,  fleeing  with  trembling  hope  to  an  invisible 
Protector,  he  casts  himself,  in  the  fuhies?  of  confi- 
dence on  that  God  who  has  revealed  himself  an 
all-sufficient  refuge,  a  very  present  help  in  time  of 
trouble.  Animated  by  the  calls  of  God's  holy  word, 
the  Christian  dejected  at  the  view  of  the  shortness 
and  uncertainty  of  life,  (who  is  not  often  thus  de- 
jected!) and  dismayed  at  the  darkness  of  the  tomb, 
(who  is  not  thus  dismayed  1)  exults  in  the  assurance, 
that  an  inheritance  among  the  saints  in  light  awaits 
him,  where  this  corruptible  shall  put  on  incorrup- 
tion,  and  this  mortal  immortality.  No  longer  do 
doubt  and  fear  cloud  the  prospect  of  futurity.  Life 
and  immortality  are  brought  to  light.  Heaven  is 
opened  to  his  view.  He  is  the  heir  of  its  glories, 
destined  to  live  for  ever  with  God. 

Thus  called  by  God's  holy  word,  Christians  are 
also  called  by  the  ministry  of  God's  holy  church. 

That  sacred  society  into  which  Christians  are 
formed,  is  ruled  by  officers  divinely  commissioned 
to  call  them  to  discharge  the  high  duties  imposed 
on  them,  and  to  rejoice  in  the  celestial  privileges 
to  which  they  may  lay  claim.     "  To  us,"  saith  an 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN.  1^9 

inspired  apostle,  "  and  to  your  successors,  to  the 
end  of  the  world,"  said  our  blessed  Lord,  "  is 
committed  the  ministry  of  reconciliation."  And  we 
beseech  you,  as  ambassadors  for  Christ,  as  though 
God  did  beseech  you  by  us,  be  ye  reconciled  unto 
God ;  walk  worthy  of  the  vocation  wherewith  ye 
are  called  ;  set  your  affections  on  things  above,  and 
let  your  hearts  be  in  heaven,  where  your  treasure 
is.  This  is  the  inspiring  call  which  the  ministers 
of  God's  church  proclaim  to  its  members.  With  a 
humility  and  meekness  founded  on  the  conviction 
that  the  treasure  committed  to  them  is  held  in 
earthen  vessels,  and  that  the  excellence  of  the 
power  is  in  God  alone,  but  with  a  dignity  and  firm- 
ness excited  by  the  consideration  that  their  com- 
mission is  divine,  that  they  are  the  ministers  of 
Christ,  and  stewards  of  the  mysteries  of  God ;  and 
with  a  zeal  and  solicitude  cherished  by  the  solemn 
conviction,  that  their  ministry  will  prove  the  means 
either  of  life  or  of  death  to  those  whom  they  ad- 
dresSj  do  the  servants  of  the  Most  High  call  men 
to  the  service  of  the  Being  who  made  them,  to 
believe  in  the  Saviour  who  redeemed  them,  to  the 
faithful  discharge  of  every  duty,  to  the  renunciation 
of  every  sin,  to  the  exercise  of  piety  to  God  and 
love  to  man,  to  moderation  in  prosperity,  to  con- 
tentment in  adversity,  to  forbearance  under  the 
injuries,  to  resignation  under  the  sorrows  of  life, 
to  careful  government  of  the  heart,  to  holy  circum- 
spection of  conduct,  to  that  holiness  without  which 
no  man  shall  see  the  Lord,  without  which  Chris- 
tians will  forfeit  that  heavenly  inheritance  to  which 
they  are  called. 

Powerfully   also   are   Christians  called   hy  the 
sacraments  and  ordinances  of  the  church. 

Vol.  in,  17 


150      THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 

These  are  external  symbols,  by  an  appeal  to  the 
senses  impressing  the  necessity  of  the  purification 
of  the  heart,  and  dependence  on  God  for  spiritual 
nourishment  and  strength.     But  these  ordinances 
are  thus  not  merely  the  natural  means  of  spiritual 
instruction.     Insignificant  as   they  appear  to  the 
Oye  of  sense,  they  are  made  by  divine  power  the 
means  of  conveying  to  us  those  influences  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  by  which  our  darkened  understandings 
are  enlightened,  and  our  corrupt  hearts  renewed. 
In  them  the  voice  of  the  Most  High  is  heard  calling 
men  to  the  participation  of  the  most  exalted  privi- 
leges, and  to  the  discharge  of  the  most  exalted 
duties.     His  paternal  voice  meets  us  at  our  first 
entrance  into  life.    In  the  sacrament  of  baptism  we 
are  born,  not  as  in  our  natural  birth,  into  a  world 
of  sin  and  sorrow,  but  into  a  spiritual  world  of 
holiness  and  joy,  the  Zion  of  the  Lord — that  Zion 
which  is  refreshed   by  the  mercy,  and  illumined 
by  the  grace  of  God.     We  are   born  not  into  a 
society  of  frail,  sinful,  and  perishing  mortals,  but 
into   the    goodly   fellowship    of   believers,   whose 
weakness  is  made  strong  by  the  strength  of  the 
Almighty,  whose  sins  are  ^vashed  away  by  the  blood 
of  atonement,  and  whose  portion  is  allotted  in  the 
resurrection  of  the  just. 

Called  in  baptism  to  inherit  these  exalted  privi- 
leges, we  are  also  called  in  this  holy  sacrament  to 
live  as  children  of  God,  as  members  of  Christ,  and 
as  inheritors  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven ;  to  put  ofi' 
the  old  man,  the  corrupt  nature  with  which  we 
came  into  the  world,  and  to  put  on  the  new  man, 
that  new  and  holy  nature  which  our  spiritual  birth 
in  baptism  denotes  and  enforces  ;  to  die  to  sin,  as 
in  baptism  we  professed  to  do,  and  to  rise  again 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN.  131 

with  that  Saviour,  into  whose  death  we  were  bap- 
tized to  newness  of  life. 

Nor  does  the  gracious  voice  of  our  heavenly- 
Father  leave  us  at  our  entrance  into  his  fold.  It 
accompanies  us  through  every  stage  of  our  Chris- 
tian course,  calling  us  to  duty,  conveying  to  us 
strength  and  consolation. 

In  the  apostolic  ordinance  of  the  laying  on  of 
hands,  we  are  called  to  renew  the  engagements  of 
baptism;  its  solemn  obligations  are  again  impressed 
upon  us,  and  spiritual  strength  and  succour  con- 
veyed to  defend  us  against  the  increasing  trials  of 
our  Christian  warfare.  In  the  tcorship  of  the  sanc- 
tuary, the  truths,  the  duties,  and  the  privileges  of 
our  Christian  calling  are  impressed  upon  us ;  our 
faith  in  these  truths  is  strengthened,  our  zeal  to 
discharge  these  duties  increased,  and  our  lively 
desires  excited  for  the  privileges  of  our  high  voca- 
tion. 

God  calls  us  to  his  service  by  still  more  affecting 
symbols.  He  lays  before  us  the  bread  and  wine  of 
the  altar,  the  body  of  his  beloved  Son  broken,  and 
the  blood  of  his  beloved  Son  shed  for  our  sins; 
and  from  the  altar  is  heard  the  voice  of  earnest 
and  aftectionate  invitation — Come,  sinful  mortals, 
eat  of  the  bread  of  life,  and  drink  of  the  waters 
of  salvation — wash  away  your  sins,  adorn  and 
strengthen  your  souls  with  celestial  graces — cele- 
brate the  love  of  him  who  died  for  you — consecrate 
yourselves  to  him  who  bought  you  with  his  blood, 
and  in  the  symbols  of  his  death  receive  the  pledges 
of  life  for  ever. 

The  call  of  God  is  addressed  to  all  men,  especi- 
ally to  those  to  whom  the  Gospel  is  proclaimed ; 
but  who  are  the  chosen  ? 


1^33       THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 

Listen  to  the  declaration  of  our  blessed  Lord — 
"  Many  are  called,  but  few  are  chosen.''^ 

Alas!  that  the  call  of  nature,  of  traditional  reli- 
gion, of  reason,  of  conscience,  of  the  Divine  Spirit 
— that  the  call  of  God  in  his  holy  word,  in  the 
ministry,  and  sacraments,  and  ordinances  of  his 
church,  urging  men  to  the  belief  of  truths  divine 
and  consolatory,  to  the  practice  of  virtues  celestial 
and  exalted,  to  the  participation  of  privileges  spiri- 
tual and  immortal,  should  be  disregarded — alas ! 
that  "  many  are  called,  but  few  are  chosen." 

Brethren,  that  few  are  chosen,  must  be  referred 
solely  to  the  fault  of  man.  On  the  part  of  God,  we 
have  seen  every  thing  has  been  done  that  even 
mercy,  more  than  justice,  could  demand.  God  deals 
with  men  as  free  agents ;  his  grace  is  given  to  all 
men  to  enable  them  to  serve  him  :  God  calls,  but 
men  refuse  to  come  ;  he  stretches  out  his  hand,  but 
they  do  not  regard  ;  he  offers  them  his  counsel,  but 
they  will  not  have  it,  and  his  affectionate  reproofs 
they  despise.  Disobedient  to  the  call  of  their  hea- 
venly Father,  they  are  not  worthy  of  being  ranked 
among  his  children,  of  being  chosen  to  the  partici- 
pation of  the  glories  of  the  heavenly  inheritance. 

The  nations  of  the  earth  were  called  by  the  voice 
of  nature,  of  reason,  of  conscience,  to  the  service 
of  that  God,  the  knowledge  of  whom  had  been 
handed  down  from  the  beginning  ;  yet  knowing 
God,  they  worshipped  him  not  as  God,  but  changed 
his  incorruptible  image  into  an  image  of  corruptible 
things.  Having  the  law  written  on  their  hearts, 
they  effaced  its  holy  impressions,  and  sought  only 
the  will  of  the  flesh,  fulfilling  the  lusts  thereof. 

And  now  when  God  speaks  to  men,  not  by  the 
feeble  voice  of  nature,  of  reason,  of  conscience,  of 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN.       133 

traditional  religion,  but  by  the  voice  of  his  only- 
begotten  and  well  beloved  Son,  there  are  those 
who  reject  his  call;  w^ho  crucify  afresh,  by  their 
sins,  the  Son  of  God  ;  who  trample  under  fc^ot  his 
blood  ;  who  do  despite  unto  his  Spirit ;  and  who, 
called  to  be  children  of  the  light  and  of  the  day, 
walk  as  the  children  of  the  night  and  of  the  dark- 
ness. There  are  they  who,  though  called,  are  not, 
ought  not  to  be  chosen. 

If  those  who,  deprived  of  the  full  and  clear  voice 
of  instruction  in   the  word,  the  ministry,  and  the 
sacraments  of  the  church,   listen  to  his  gracious 
voice  speaking  to  them  in  the  language  of  tradi- 
tional religion,  in  his  works,  in  his  ways,  in  the 
monitions  of  conscience,  in  the  secret  suggestions 
of  his  blessed  Spirit;  if,  obeying  this  celestial  voice, 
they  seek  to  serve  the  Maker  in  all  things  as  far 
as  they  know  his  will,  and  to  worship  him  as  far  as 
tradition  and  reason  dictate  an  acceptable  worship ; 
if  they  supplicate,  though  with  uncertain  faith,  the 
mercy  of  the  Father  of  their  spirits,  and  repose, 
though  with  wavering  confidence,  in  the  goodness 
of  the  Parent  of  the  universe,  and  cherish,  though 
.  with  dubious  hope,   the   prospect   of  immortality 
beyond  this  transitory  existence  ;  if  they  thus  seek 
to  serve  the  Being  who  made  them,  according  to 
the  measure  of  light  and  knowledge  which  they 
have  received — he  who  is  not  a  hard  Master,  reap- 
ing where  he  has  not  sown,  will  accept  their  im- 
perfect but  sincere  homage,  through  the  merits  of 
him  who  gave  himself  a  ransom  for  all— that  Lamb 
of  God,  the  efficacy  of  whose  sacrifice  extended 
through  all  ages,  having  been  slain  from  the  foun- 
dation of  the  world.     And  in  that  celestial  house  in 
which  are  many  mansions,  he  will  confer  on  them 


]34  THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN. 

degrees  of  glory  suited  to  the  degrees  of  virtue 
which  they  have  attained. 

The  highest  stations  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven 
are  reserved  for  those  among  professing  Christians, 
the  called,  the  elect  of  God,  who  shall  finally  be 
chosen  by  him  as  his  everlasting  inheritance. 

Those  who,  called  by  the  word  of  God,  obey  its 
holy  dictates  in  denying  ungodliness  and  worldly 
lusts,  and  living  righteously,  soberly,  and  godly  in 
the  world — those  who,  called  by  the  ministry  of  the 
church,  accept  the  offer  of  reconciliation,  believing 
from  the  heart  unto  righteousness  in  the  Saviour 
proffered  to  them,  and  adorning  his  doctrine  in  all 
things — those  who,  called  by  the  sacraments  of  the 
church,  improve  the  grace  there  conferred,  to  the 
death  of  sin  and  to  the  life  of  righteousnes,  and 
seek  to  be  holy  as  he  who  hath  called  them  is  holy; 
these  are  the  few  (alas  !  compared  with  the  multi- 
tude of  the  finally  rejected,  the  few,)  whom  the 
Judge  of  the  whole  earth  shall  choose  before  men 
and  angels  to  be  his  people  for  ever ;  these  are 
they  whom  he  will  advance  to  a  kingdom  that  shall 
not  be  moved,  on  whom  he  will  bestow  an  inherit- 
ance of  glory  that  fadeth  not  away. 

Ye  then  who  enjoy  the  light  and  privileges  of 
the  Gospel,  distinguished  far  above  the  rest  of  your 
fellow  men  is  your  spiritual  condition.  For  though 
salvation  is  possible  to  those  destitute  of  the  ex- 
ternal grace  of  the  Gospel,  they  can  attain  it  but 
through  much  uncertainty,  through  many  perplex- 
ing doubts  and  fears.  Deprived  of  the  full  know- 
ledge of  God  revealed  in  the  Gospel,  and  of  the 
way  of  access  to  him  through  a  Saviour;  of  the 
truths,  the  precepts,  and  the  promises  of  his  holy 
word ;  of  the  enlightening  and  sanctifying  efficacy 


THE  CALLED  AND  THE  CHOSEN.  135 

of  his  grace  in  the  sacraments  and  ordinances  of 
his  church,  they  cannot  attain  in  this  life  that  ex- 
alted degree  of  holiness,  nor  those  spiritual  conso- 
lations and  hopes  which  may  distinguish  Christians. 
Nor  hereafter  will  they  be  advanced  to  felicity  as 
exalted  as  that  which,  through  God's  mercy  and 
grace  in  Jesus  Christ,  will  be  awarded  to  those 
faithful  Christians  who  have  walked  worthy  of  their 
holy  vocation. 

Ye  then.  Christians,  are  peculiarly  the  favoured 
of  the  Lord — in  the  highest  sense  his  called,  his 
elect.  Distinguished  are  his  grace  and  goodness  to 
you,  in  thus  translating  you  from  the  darkness  and 
misery  of  your  natural  condition,  into  the  light  and 
comfort  of  his  grace  and  favour. 

But  take  heed  lest,  being  called,  ye  fail  finally  of 
being  chosen. 

This  momentous  issue  depends  upon  yourselves. 
God  calls  you — by  his  word,  his  ministry,  his  ordin- 
ances, he  calls  you.  Sincere  in  his  purposes  of 
mercy,  he  enables  you  by  his  grace  to  obey  his  call. 
No  secret  will  opposes  his  declared  will,  that  all 
men  should  be  saved.  No  decree  of  his  power 
selects  certain  individuals  to  salvation,  and  excludes 
others ;  or  determines  the  eternal  destiny  of  the 
human  race,  independently  of  those  deeds  done  in 
the  body,  by  which  he  declares  all  men  shall  be 
judged.  No ;  it  was  the  eternal  purpose  of  his 
mercy  in  his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  to  render  salvation 
possible  for  all  men,  and  finally  to  choose  or  to 
reject  them,  according  to  the  improvement  which 
they  shall  have  made  of  the  talents  and  the  grace 
given  unto  them. 

Say  not  then,  O  man,  that  the  ways  of  God  are 
unequal.    Lay  not,  sinner,  thy  destruction  to  him 


136  THE  CALLED  ANfi  THE  CHOSEN. 

who  calls  thee  to  salvation.  But  take  heed,  Chris- 
tians, lest  a  promise  being  made  you  of  entering 
into  God's  rest,  you  fall  short — take  heed  lest,  called 
to  be  heirs  of  heaven,  ye  forfeit  its  glories.  It  is 
possible  that,  at  that  great  day  vi^hen  the  Judge  of 
all  comes  to  choose  among  his  called  those  who 
are  to  be  his  people  for  ever,  you  may  behold 
Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jaoob,  all  those  in  every  age 
and  nation  who  fear  God  and  work  righteousness, 
in  the  kingdom  of  heaven ;  and  you^  for  whom  these 
blessings  of  this  kingdom  were  primarily  designed 
— you,  the  children  of  the  kingdom,  for  ever  cast 
out  Give  all  diligence  to  make  your  calling  and 
election  sure,  "  for  many  are  called,  but  few  are 
chosen." 


SERMON   XII. 


THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY  IN  WARNING  SINNERS. 


Isaiah  Iviii.  1. 

Cry  aloud,  spare  not,  lift  up  thy  voice  like  a  trumpet,  and  show  my 
people  their  transgression,  and  the  house  of  Jacob  their  sins. 

This  was  the  fearful  injunction  of  God  on  tiie 
holy  prophet.  Ofttimes  he  was  charged  with  the 
messages  of  mercy  and  the  tidings  of  salvation. 
The  vail  that  concealed  future  ages  was  removed ; 
the  light  of  Gospel-day  beamed  on  the  soul  of  the 
prophet ;  and  he  was  commanded  to  proclaim  to 
the  chosen  people  of  God,  that  the  Sun  of  Righte- 
ousness should  arise  with  healin^  under  his  wino-s 
Ofttimes  did. his  soul  bound  with  joy  at  the  grateful 
commission,  to  comfort  disconsolate  Judah  and 
captive  Jerusalem  with  the  tidings  that  her  iniquity 
was  pardoned,  that  she  should  receive  at  the  Lord's 
hand  double  for  all  her  sins.  In  enraptured  vision 
he  beholds  a  messenger  on  the  distant  mountains 
hastening  to  proclaim  to  Judah  and  Jerusalem  the 
advent  of  their  Lord,  and  he  bursts  forth  in  the 
strains  of  joy  and  triumph^"  O  thou  that  tellest 
glad  tidings  to  Zion,  get  thee  up  into  the  high 
mountain :  O  thou  that  tellest  glad  tidings  to  Jeru- 
salem, lift  up  thy  voice  with  strength ;  lift  it  up,  be 
riot  afraid ;  say  unto  the  cities  of  Judah,  Behold 
your  God  !"*     Ofttimes  did  the  prophet,  personat- 

*  Isa.  xl.  9. 

Vol.  ilL  18 


138  THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY 

ing  the  blessed  Messiah,  describe  in  joyful  strains 
his  gracious  character  and  offices.  "  The  Spirit 
of  the  Lord  God  is  upon  me;  because  the  Lord 
hath  anointed  me  to  preach  good  tidings  unto  the 
meek;  ho  hath  sent  me  to  bind  up  the  broken- 
hearted, to  proclaim  liberty  to  the  captives,  and 
the  opening  of  the  prison  to  them  that  are  bound; 
to  proclaim  the  acceptable  year  of  the  Lord."*  Oft- 
times  did  the  prophet,  looking  down  the  long  tract 
of  time,  hail  the  dominion  of  the  Prince  of  Peace, 
the  accession  of  the  nations  to  the  spiritual  kingdom 
of  the  Messiah,  and  the  glorious  and  everlasting 
blessin<Ts  of  his  reign.  These  were  the  exalted 
subjects  that  animated  his  strains  when  he  pro- 
claimed that  "  they  should  not  hurt  nor  destroy  in 
all  the  holy  mountain  of  God  ;"t  "  that  the  righte- 
ousness of  Jerusalem  should  go  forth  as  brightness, 
and  her  salvation  as  a  lamp  that  burneth  ;"t  "  that 
Gentiles  should  come  to  her  light,  and  kings  to  the 
the  brightness  of  her  rising ;  that  violence  should 
no  more  be  heard  in  her  land,  wasting  nor  destruc- 
tion within  her  borders,  but  that  she  could  call  her 
walls  Salvation,  and  her  gates  Praise.  Her  sun 
should  no  more  go  down,  neither  her  moon  with- 
draw itself,  but  the  Lord  should  be  her  everlasting 
light,  and  the  days  of  her  mourning  should  be 
ended."§ 

But  alas!  the  prophet  was  not  always  the  mes- 
senger of  glad  tidings  to  Israel;  for  "  their  in- 
iquities had  separated  between  them  and  their 
God,  and  their  sins  have  hid  his  face  from  them. 
Their  thoughts  were  thoughts  of  iniquity,  wasting 
and  destruction  were  in  their  paths."||     Therefore 

*  Isa.  Ixi.  1,2.  t  Isa.  xi.  9.  |  Isa  Ixii.  l. 

§Isa.  lx.3,  18,20.  ||  Isa.  lix.  3,  7. 


IN  WARNING  SINNERS.  1  39 

the  holy  prophet  who  had  so  often  proclaimed  the 
messages  of  mercy,  was  charged  with  the  awful 
commission  of  judgment  and  of  wrath. 

"  Cry  aloud,"  was  the  charge  to  him,  "  spare  not, 
lift  up  thy  voice  like  a  trumpet,  and  show  my 
people  their  transgression,  and  the  house  of  Jacob 
their  sins."  With  plainess,  with  impartiality,  with 
decision,  with  energy,  show  the  rebellious  people 
of  Jehovah  their  transgression,  the  guilty  house  of 
Jacob  their  sins. 

Like  the  holy  prophet,  the  church  has  been 
occupied,  in  her  preceding  joyful  festivals,  in  pro- 
claiming to  her  members  only  the  messages  of 
glad  tidings.  She  called  upon  us  to  prepare  for 
the  coming  of  the  Lord  of  hosts  to  his  temple,  even 
that  Messenger  of  the  covenant  whom  we  should 
delight  in.  Hitherto  she  has  gladdened  our  hearts 
with  the  tidings  of  great  joy,  that  "  unto  us  a  child 
is  born,  unto  us  a  son  is  given  ;"*  and  that  "  he 
should  be  for  a  covenant  of  the  people,  for  a  light 
of  the  Gentiles ;  to  open  the  blind  eyes,  to  bring 
out  the  prisoners  from  the  prison,  and  them  that 
sit  in  darkness  out  of  the  prison-house."t  These 
have  been  the  joyful  subject  of  all  her  holy  services. 

But  alas !  he  whose  glorious  character  and  offices 
she  has  thus  triumphantly  set  forth,  "  has  come 
unto  his  own,  and  his  own  have  received  him  not."J 
"  Our  iniquities  have  separated  between  us  and 
our  God,  and  hid  his  face  from  us,  that  he  cannot 
hear."§  Therefore  doth  the  church  change  the 
songs  of  triumph  for  the  lamentations  of  mourning, 
and  the  tidings  of  joy  for  the  calls  to  contrition ; 
and  devoting  this  season  to  solemn  reflection,  hu- 

*  Isa.  ix,  6.  t  Isa.  xlii.  6,  7. 

i  St.  John  i.  11.  .    SIsa.lix.  3. 


140  THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY 

miliation,  and  penitence,  she  charges  her  ministers 
with  the  commission  of  the  prophets — "  Cry  aloud, 
spare  not,  lift  up  thy  voice  like  a  trumpet,  and  show 
my  people  their  transgression,  and  the  house  of 
Jacob  their  sins." 

Yes,  brethren,  in  obedience  to  the  command  of 
that  God  whose  commission  we  bear,  and  of  the 
church  whose  ministers  we  are,  it  is  our  duty  to 
"  show  you  your  transgressions  and  your  sins  ;" 
and  in  the  discharge  of  this  duty  to  "  cry  aloud, 
and  spare  not,  to  lift  up  our  voice  like  a  trumpet," 
to  execute  her  commission  with  plainness,  with 
fidelity,  with  energy,  and  with  zeal. 

1 .  The  charge  respects  sinners  of  every  descrip- 
tion, not  only  those  who  have  advanced  to  the  last 
stage  of  confirmed  impiety,  openly  denying  the 
Lord  who  bought  them ;  treating  his  divine  mission 
as  an  imposture,  the  messages  of  his  salvation  as 
idle  tales,  and  that  judgment  and  eternity  which 
he  came  to  reveal,  as  only  phantoms  conjured  up 
to  impose  on  the  credulous  and  alarm  the  timid. 
Not  only  those  who,  having  for  a  long  time  sought 
only  the  gratifications  of  their  sensual  passions, 
have  at  length  given  themselves  up  to  work  all  un- 
cleanness  with  greediness,  who  riot  without  shame 
and  without  remorse  in  the  scenes  of  intemperance 
and  lewdness,  and  from  whose  lips  proceed  blas- 
phemous imprecations  of  the  God  who  made  them, 
and  of  the  Saviour  who  redeemed  them.  Not  only 
those  who,  however  they  may  abstain  from  tho^e 
gross  vices  that  would  destroy  their  reputation,  their 
property,  and  their  health,  are  restrained  by  these 
considerations  alone  ;  and  making  the  acquirement 
of  gain,  and  the  enjoyment  of  pleasure,  their  su- 
preme aim,  pursue  these  objects  in  the  neglect  and 


IN  WARNING  SINNERS.  141 

violation  of  those  sacred  duties  which  bind  them  to 
their  God,  of  that  j-ustice  and  charity  which  they 
owe  to  man,  and  of  that  sobriety  and  purity  which 
they  should  cherish  in  their  conduct  and  their 
hearts.  Not  only  sinners  of  this  prominent  and 
marked  character,  but  they  also,  who,  whatever  may 
be  the  comparative  innocence  of  their  lives,  have 
not  yet  secured  their  Christian  privileges,  pledged 
to  them  in  baptism,  by  fulfilling  its  sacred  obliga- 
tions, nor  made  their  peace  with  God  by  unfeigned 
repentance  and  lively  faith ;  who,  while  they  culti- 
vate integrity,  and  justice,  and  kindness,  in  their 
intercourse  with  their  fellow  men,  and  abstain  from 
the  gross  indulgences  that  would  corrupt  their  own 
hearts,  live  in  the  habitual  neglect  of  the  service 
and  homage  which  they  owe  to  their  Almighty 
Maker,  Benefactor,  and  Saviour.  To  impenitent 
sinners,  to  unrenewed  and  unholy  men  of  every 
description,  the  voice  of  God's  judgment  is  directed 
— "  Turn  ye,  turn  ye,  from  your  evil  ways,  lest  in- 
iquity prove  your  ruin."*  Every  violation  of  the 
laws  of  God  which  we  commit,  is  preparing  for  us, 
if  not  in  the  present  world  remorse  of  conscience, 
assuredly  in  that  which  is  to  come,  the  worm  that 
never  dies,  and  the  fire  that  never  will  be  quenched. 
For  every  sinful  gratification,  for  every  profanation 
of  the  holy  name  of  our  God,  for  every  violation  of 
his  laws,  he  will  bring  us  into  judgment.  And  does 
that  awful  event,  which  will  bring  us  with  all  our 
sins  and  iniquities  into  the  presence  of  the  Almighty 
Sovereign  and  Judge  of  the  world,  and  whose  tre- 
mendous and  eternal  vengeance  we  have  justly 
provoked,  impress  us  with  no  terrors  \  My  brethren, 

*  Ezek.  xviii.  39. 


142  THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY 

we  may  be  free  from  gross  and  enormous  trans- 
gressions, and  from  any  violations  of  the  laws  of 
justice,  charity,  and  purity,  but  the  sins  of  omission, 
as  it  regards  the  homage  and  obedience  due  to  the 
Almighty  Being  who  made  and  rules  us,  our  mer- 
ciful and  gracious  Protector  and  Father,  the  Foun- 
tain of  all  our  blessings,  the  Author  and  Finisher 
of  our  redemption,  will  be  charged  upon  us  at  the 
great  day  of  account.  Until  we  are  reconciled  unto 
God  through  repentance  and  faith  in  the  merits  of 
his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  and  transformed  by  the  re- 
newing" of  our  minds,  walk  in  newness  of  life,  we 
are  in  the  gall  of  bitterness  and  bond  of  iniquity. 

2.  There  are  also  insincere  professors  of  religion, 
to  whom  this  injunction  of  the  prophet,  to  "  cry 
aloud,  and  spare  not,  to  show  them  their  transgres- 
sions and  their  sins,"  will  apply. 

The  profession  of  religion  is  sometimes  assumed 
from  some  motive  of  worldly  reputation,  interest, 
or  advancement,  under  the  cloak  of  sanctity,  to 
deceive  the  world,  while,  in  secret,  unhallowed  pas- 
sions and  sensual  and  selfish  aims  are  pursued  and 
gratified.  There  are  some  who,  like  the  pharisee 
of  old,  "  make  clean  the  outside  of  the  cup  and  of 
the  platter,  while  within  they  are  full  of  extortion 
and  excess."*  Against  such  as  these  did  the  Lord 
direct,  by  his  prophet,  the  voice  of  judgment — 
"  Cry  aloud,  spare  not."  To  the  guilt  of  trans- 
gression against  their  Almighty  Maker — of  sinful 
passions  cherished  and  indulged — they  add  the 
deeper  guilt  of  attempting  not  only  to  deceive  their 
fellow-men,  but  to  impose  upon  the  all-seeing  God. 
But  assuredly  the  poriod  is  approaching,  when  that 

*  Matt,  xxiii.  25. 


IN  WARNING  SINNERS.  14^ 

sovereign  and  just  God,  whom  they  are  mocking 
and  insulting  by  the  pretences  of  piety  and  devo- 
tion, will  come  and  assign  them  their  just  portion 
for  ever  in  that  place  where  there  is  only  "  weep- 
ing, and  wailing,  and  gnashing  of  tfeeth  ;"  for  "  the 
hope  of  the  hypocrite  shall  perish."* 

3.  There  are  also  superficial  professors  of  reli- 
gion, who  are  the  just  objects  of  this  injunction  of 
God  to  the  prophet. 

They  who  consider  religion  as  consisting  merely 
in  decency  of  conduct,  in  an  attendance  one  day  in 
the  week  on  public  worship,  and  in  professions  of 
attachment  to  the  cause  of  piety  and  virtue ;  who 
are  punctual  in  observing  the  indispensable  forms 
of  religion,  but  are  not  attentive  to  the  spiritual 
import  and  tendency  of  these  institutions,  nor  dili- 
gent in  making  them  instrumental  to  their  growth 
in  piety  and  virtue,  and  to  their  advancement  in 
that  "  holiness,  without  which  no  man  can  see  the 
Lord."t  They  have  not  laid  the  foundation  of  their 
religion  in  that  "  renewing  of  the  mind"  by  the 
Holy  Spirit  which  their  baptism  denoted  and  en- 
forced, and  for  which  it  pledged  the  necessary 
grace  and  the  most  powerful  motives,  and  which 
alone  can  make  us  real,  consistent  Christians,  and 
by  assimilating  us  to  the  image  of  God  in  his  purity 
and  holiness,  qualify  us  for  the  enjoyment  of  his 
presence.  They  are  strangers  to  the  quickening, 
transforming,  invigorating  power  of  faith  as  the 
principle  of  the  Christian  life,  that  faith  which  is 
"  the  substance  of  things  hoped  for,  the  evidence 
of  things  not  seen,"J  which  constantly  brings  to  our 
minds,  as  the  objects  of  our  supreme  love,  confi- 

*  Job  viii.  13.  f  Heb.  xii.  11,  j  Heb.  xi.  I. 


144  THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY 

dence,  desire,  and  pursuit,  the  glorious  realities  of 
a  spiritual  and  eternal  world — our  gracious  and 
all-powerful  God  and  Saviour,  his  all-prevailing 
merits  and  grace,  the  perfection  and  the  bliss  of 
his  heavenly  kingdom.  Satisfied  with  a  certain 
routine  of  public  observances,  they  neglect  those 
no  less  indispensable  private  means  of  grace,  those 
high  sources  of  consolation  in  the  Christian  life — - 
secret  and  fervent  meditation  and  prayer.  Ah  ! 
my  brethren,  how  far  short  of  the  claims  of  the 
Gospel  is  this  superficial  piety !  how  inadequate  to 
the  righteous  demands  of  our  God  and  Saviour! 
how  delusive  as  a  preparation  for  heaven  !  All 
these  considerations  unite  in  demanding  that  we 
be  transformed  by  the  renewing  of  our  minds ;  that 
we  be  sanctified  in  soul  and  body ;  that  the  lives 
which  we  live  in  the  flesh,  be  lives  of  faith  on  the 
Son  of  God,  in  whom,  though  now  we  see  him  not, 
yet  believing,  we  rejoice  with  joy  unspeakable  and 
full  of  glory  ;  and  that,  looking  supremely,  not  at 
the  things  which  are  seen  and  temporal,  but  at  the 
things  which  are  not  seen  and  eternal,  we  earnestly 
and  constantly  press  for  the  mark  of  the  prize  of 
our  high  calling  in  Christ  Jesus.  Let  us  not  then 
deceive  ourselves  with  a  form  of  godliness  while 
we  are  destitute  of  its  power,  nor  draw  near  to 
God  with  our  lips  with  an  external,  superficial  ser- 
vice, while  our  hearts  are  far  from  him. 

4.  There  are  professing  Christians  of  a  different 
description,  to  whom  the  injunction  of  God  to  the 
prophet  to  "  cry  aloud,  spare  not,"  should  be 
directed. 

They  who  place  their  religion  in  the  sallies  of 
irregular  zeal,  and  not  in  the  sober  and  uniform 
dispositions  and  virtues  of  the  Christian  spirit  and 


IN  WARNING  SINNEltS.  1  45 

ijharacter,  who,  instead  of  being  occupied  vvilh  their 
own  demerit  and  unworthiness,  and  with  the  hum- 
ble  publican,  "  smiting  their  breast  and  saying, 
■God   be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner,"*   indulge   the 
censorious  spirit  of  the  self-righteous  pharisee,  and 
in  the  elation  of  spiritual  pride  and  arrogance,  say 
to  their  brother,  "  Stand  off  from  me,  for  I  am 
holier  than  thou  ;"t  they  who,  while  they  are  loiid 
in  their  professions  of  ardent  love  to  God  and  zeal 
for  his  glory,  are  unmindful  of  the  command,  that 
"  he  who  loveth  God  should  love  his  brother  also,"|: 
and  should  uniformly  display  tiie  virtues  of  humi- 
lity, of  mildness,  of  tenderness  and  benevolence. 
There  are  those  who,  in  the  fervours  of  an  unhal- 
lowed enthusiasm,  will  neglect  or  undervalue  the 
ministry  and  ordinances  of  Christ's  church,  which 
God  has  made  the  means  of  his  grace  and  the 
pledges  of  his  mercy,  and  yet  lay  claim  to  extraor- 
dinary inspirations    of  his   Spirit.     But  God  has 
jcommanded  us  to  walk  blameless  in  all  his  statutes 
and  ordinances :  he  has  gathered  us  into  a  church, 
that  thus,  as  members  of  the  mystical  body  of  his 
Son,  we  may  be  united  in  the  exercise  of  a  living 
faith  to  its  divine  Head.     The  fruits  of  the  Spirit 
are  not  pride,  arrogance,  censoriousness ;  but  hu- 
mility, meekness,  love.     It  is  the  declaration  of 
Christ — "  Not  every  one  that  saith  unto  me.  Lord, 
Lord,  shall  enter  into  the  kingdom  of  heaven ;  but 
he  that  doeth   the  will  of  my  Father  who  is  in 
heaven."§     Let  us  take  heed  therefore,  if  we  are 
thus  deceiving  ourselves,  lest,  at  the  solemn  day 
of  account,  the  Almighty  Saviour  and  Judge  con- 
found our  boastful  pretensions  with  the  sentence 

*  Luke  xviii.  13.  t  Isa.  Ixv.  5. 

I  1  John  iv.  31.  §  Matt.  vii.  21. 

V©L.  III.  19 


146  THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY 

of  reprobation — "  Depart  from   me,  I  know  you 
not." 

5.  There  are  also  professing  Christians  who  fall 
very  far  short  of  the  claims  of  their  Christian 
calling. 

Contented  with  low  attainments  in  piety  and  vir- 
tue, with  only  such  a  measure  of  obedience  as  they 
think  will  save  them  from  the  penalties  of  the  di- 
vine law,  they  are  indiflerent  about  attending  to  its 
highest  demands^  and  fulfilling  its  sacred  spirit. 
Aiming  at  the  fruitless  task  of  serving  God  and 
mammon,  while  they  wish  to  rank  themselves 
amonjr  the  humble  followers  of  Christ — for  it  is 
their  wish  to  die  the  death  of  the  righteous,  and  to 
have  their  last  end  with  his — they  are  yet  loth  to 
relinquish  the  corrupting  circles  of  sensual  enjoy- 
ment. But  it  is  the  indispensable  characteristic  of 
Christians  to  aim  at  the  highest  standard  of  holi- 
ness— at  being  pure,  as  the  holy  Being  whom  we 
serve  is  pure — at  being  perfect,  as  our  Father  in 
heaven  is  perfect ;  and  not  to  "  love  the  world,  nor 
the  things  of  the  vv^orld :  for  if  any  man  love  the 
world,  the  love  of  the  Father  is  not  in  him."*  And 
though  this  injunction  cannot  be  intended  to  sepa- 
rate us  from  the  indispensable  duties  and  innocent 
enjoyments  of  life,  it  was  surely  designed  to  forbid 
ail  those  indulgences  that  corrupt  the  purity  of  our 
hearts  and  weaken  the  fervours  of  our  piety.  We 
must  then  be  prepared,  in  all  these  cases,  to  deny 
ourselves,  to  take  up  our  cross  and  to  follow  the 
path  of  holy  obedience  and  patience  marked  out  by 
our  crucified  Lord,  or  we  cannot  be  his  disciples. 

6.  Even  the  sincere  followers  of  Christ  are  the 
objects  of  tlie  injunction — "Cry  aloud,  spare  not, 

*  1  John  ii.  15. 


IN  WARNING  SINNERS.  147 

show  my  people  their  transgression,  and  the  house 
of  Jacob  their  sins." 

For  how  far  short  do  they  fall  of  that  perfection 
in  piety  and  goodness  after  which  they  should 
aspire  !  How  warm  is  their  attachment  to  earthly 
pursuits  and  pleasures,  and  how  feeble  their  love 
for  spiritual  and  eternal  objects — for  the  truths  that 
will  save  them  from  error,  and  sin,  and  death — for 
the  objects  that  will  make  them  happy  to  all  eter- 
nity! How  many  secret  imperfections  alloy  the 
virtues  that  shine  fair  unto  the  world  !  How  often 
have  they  to  lament  the  inconstancy  of  their  pious 
resolutions,  tlie  feebleness  of  their  holy  desires, 
their  susceptibility  to  the  many  allurements  of  a 
tempting  world  ! 

Yes,  Christian  brethren,  sincere  as  is  your  devo- 
tion to  your  God,  supreme  as  are  your  resolutions 
to  serve  him,  you  must  bear  testimony  to  the  truth, 
that  "  there  is  no  man  that  liveth  and  sinneth  not." 
Let  the  reflection  on  your  numerous  frailties  and 
imperfections  teach  you  the  deepest  humility,  and 
while  it  excites  to  increased  watchfulness  and  cir- 
cumspection, lead  you  to  seek  the  powerful  suc- 
cours of  that  grace  which  only  can  keep  you  from 
falling.  Let  your  prayers,  your  desires,  your  ex- 
ertions in  the  great  duties  of  your  Christian  call- 
ing, be  sincere,  and  earnest,  and  constant ;  and 
then,  whatever  m^y  be  the  frailties  of  your  nature, 
you  may  take  comfort  in  the  assurance,  that  he 
who  hath  called  you,  is  faithful  as  he  is  merciful, 
and  will  not  suffer  you  to  be  tempted  above  what 
you  are  able  to  bear,  and  to  resist,  and  to  over- 
come. 

Finally,  brethren,  while  the  servants  of  the  sanc- 
tuary are  diligent  and  faithful  in  the  execution  of 


148  THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  FIDELITY 

that  commission  for  which  they  must  render  an 
account — that  commission  which  enjoins  them  to 
"  cry  aloud  and  spare  not,  to  show  the  people  their 
transgressions  and  their  sins" — let  each  individual 
carefully  examine  his  own  heart  and  life,  that  he 
may  humbly  repent  of  the  trespass  which  he  hath 
committed,  and  of  the  sin  in  vvhich  he  hath  sinned. 

This  sincere,  deep,  and  faithful  examination  of 
our  spiritual  character  and  state  is  a  paramount 
duty  at  all  times,  essential  to  our  advancement  in 
the  great  work  of  our  Christian  calling — the  putting 
off  the  sins  of  our  corrupt  nature,  the  putting  on 
the  graces  of  the  new  man  in  Christ  Jesus.  Yet 
wise  is  the  institution  of  the  church,  which  at  this 
holy  season  calls  us  to  more  serious  and  frequent  ex- 
ercises of  self-examination,  meditation,  and  prayer^ 
lest  uninterrupted  occupation  with  the  scenes  of 
the  world  should  weaken  the  ardour  or  tarnish  the 
purity  of  our  spiritual  affections,  or  confirm  us  in 
our  indifference  to  the  things  that  belong  to  our 
eternal  peace. 

Deep  repentance,  leading,  through  divine  grace, 
to  newness  of  life — faith  unfeigned  in  the  merits 
and  power  of  the  blessed  Redeemer,  working  by 
love,  and  bringing  forth  the  fruits  of  righteousness 
— are  the  indispensable  conditions  of  salvation. 
"  Turn  then,  turn  then  from  your  evil  ways,  lest 
iniquity  prove  your  ruin."*  "  As  I  live,  saith  the 
Lord  God,  I  have  no  pleasure  in  the  death  of  the 
wicked ;  but  had  rather  that  he  should  turn  from  his 
evil  ways  and  live.  Turn  then,  turn  then  ;  for  why 
will  ye  die,  O  house  of  Israel  f 'f  "  Believe  on  the 
Lord  Jesus  Christ,  and  you  shall  be  saved. "{  If 
the  guilty  children  of  men  would  listen  to  the  affec- 

*  Ezek.  xviii.  30.        t  Ezek.  xxxiii.  11.        f  Acts  xvi.  31. 


IN  WARNING  SINNERS.  149 

donate  invitations  of  God  their  Saviour,  and  turn- 
ing from  their  iniquities,  would  fulfil  the  purpose 
of  their  being,  and  devote  themselves  to  the  Lord 
their  God  in  righteousness  and  holiness — if  the 
professors  of  the  Christian  name  would  walk  wor- 
thy of  their  holy  vocation,  adorning  the  doctrine 
of  God  their  Saviour  in  all  things — the  ministers 
of  the  Most  High  would  be  absolved  from  the  ne- 
cessity of  fulfilling  the  injunction,  "  Cry  aloud, 
spare  not — show  my  people  their  transgressions, 
and  the  house  of  Jacob  their  sins."  Theirs  would 
then  be  the  more  delightful  duty  to  fulfil  the  com- 
mission of  peace  and  reconciliation,  to  proclaim 
the  glad  tidings  of  mercy  and  salvation.  "  Comfort 
ye,  comfort  ye  my  people,  saith  your  God."*  "  For 
the  Lord  will  redeem  Jacob,  and  will  glorify  him- 
self in  Israel."!  "  Fear  not,  for  I  am  with  you ; 
be  not  dismayed,  for  I  am  your  God."t  "  They 
that  wait  upon  the  Lord  shall  renew  their  strength  ; 
they  shall  mount  up  with  wings  as  eagles ;  they 
shall  run,  and  not  be  weary ;  they  shall  walk,  and 
not  faint."§  "  The  redeemed  of  the  Lord  shall 
return,  and  come  to  Zion  with  songs,  and  everlast- 
ing joy  upon  their  heads ;  they  shall  obtain  joy 
and  gladness,  and  sorrow  and  sighing  shall  flee 
away."|| 

Even  so,  blessed  Lord,  hasten  this  glorious  con- 
summation of  the  felicity  of  thy  people — if  not  in 
this  world  of  sin,  of  sorrow,  and  of  tears — in  that 
new  heaven  and  new  earth,  wherein  dwelleth  for 
ever  the  perfection  of  righteousness  and  the  fulness 
•of  joy. 

*  Isa.  xl.  1.  t  Isa.  xliv.  23.  |  Isa.  xli.  10. 

§  Isa.  xl.  31.  II  Isa.  li.  11. 


SERMON  XIII. 


SELF-EXAMINATION. 


Lam.  iii.  40. 
Let  US  search  and  try  our  ways. 

He  who,  in  the  career  of  worldly  business  or 
pleasure,  never  pauses  and  reflects  on  the  character 
of  his  actions,  and  the  tendency  of  his  course,  would 
be  regarded  as  guilty  of  great  folly,  and  as  seriously 
endangering  his  welfare.  But  considering  man  in 
his  character  as  a  spiritual,  and  his  destiny  as  an 
immortal  being,  what  shall  we  say  of  those  who 
never  pause  and  reflect  whether  they  are  acting 
worthy  of  their  spiritual  character,  and  making 
preparation  for  their  immortal  destiny.  If  to  hazard 
our  temporal  prosperity,  through  want  of  reflection, 
be  folly,  what  must  that  heedlessness  be  denomi- 
nated, which  puts  in  jeopardy  the  interests  of 
eternity  ^ 

My  brethren,  we  are  candidates  for  an  immortal 
existence — we  are  to  live  for  ever  in  a  state  of 
happiness  or  misery — our  destiny  is  to  be  decided 
at  the  tribunal  of  the  Lord  of  the  universe ;  but 
him,  our  Maker  and  our  Judge,  we  have  offended 
by  our  transgressions ;  the  sentence  of  his  just 
displeasure  is  proclaimed  against  us.  "  Let  us 
search  and  try  our  ways,  and  turn  again  unto  the 
Lord." 


SELF-EXAMlNATfON.  •  1 51 

This  scrutiny  into  our  spiritual  character  and 
condition  is  at  all  times  necessary,  either  to  rouse 
us  from  a  state  of  sin,  or  to  quicken  our  progress 
in  the  religious  course  on  which  we  have  entered. 
Considering,  however,  the  propensity  of  mankind 
to  neglect  a  duty  which  is  hostile  to  worldly  indul- 
gence and  sensual  pursuits,  wisely  has  the  church 
set  apart  a  period  to  be  consecrated  with  more  than 
ordinary  solemnity  to  that  work  of  religious  ex- 
amination, which  must  be  the  commencement,  as  it 
is  essential  to  the  progress  of  the  spiritual  life,  and 
which  ought  particularly  to  mark  the  season  pre- 
paratory to  the  commemorationof  that  event  which 
brings  most  forcibly  into  view  our  guilt,  and  which 
affords  the  sure  pledge  of  our  pardon — the  passion 
and  death  of  our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

Urged  then  by  the  general  obligation  of  the 
duty,  and  by  its  peculiar  propriety  during  the  holy 
season  on  which  we  have  now  entered,  "  let  us 
search  and  try  our  ways." 

1.  The  first  subject  of  inquiry  should  be — What 
is  the  supreme  object  of  our  desire  and  pursuit  X 

The  world  is  the  scene  of  our  duty,  as  it  is  the 
source  of  many  of  our  rational  enjoyments.  There 
is  no  one  object  which  it  presents,  which,  in  a 
certain  degree,  and  to  a  certain  extent,  may  not  be 
pursued  by  us  without  endangering  our  piety  and 
virtue;  and  yet  there  is  no  one  object  which,  in  the 
excessive  love  and  pursuit  of  it,  will  not  be  de- 
structive of  our  piety  and  subversive  of  our  eternal 
interests. 

Here  then  arises  an  important  inquiry — Does 
the  world  occupy  such  a  place  in  our  affections 
and  exertions  as  to  exclude  an  attention  to  our 


152  SELF-EXAMINATION. 

spiritual  concerns,  or  to  lead  us  to  make  them  in- 
ferior objects  of  desire  and  pursuit?  The  inquiry 
is  one  on  which  we  should  enter  without  delay, 
and  whicfi  we  should  prosecute  with  solicitude  and 
fidelity :  for  if  we  are  so  devoted  to  our  temporal 
interests  as  to  neglect  the  concerns  of  our  salva- 
tion, what  will  be  our  condition  when  we  are  sum- 
moned from  that  world  with  which  we  are  en- 
grossed, and  have  entered  on  that  eternity  for 
whose  awful  scenes  we  are  unprepared  1 

It  is  an  inquiry,  then,  of  injfinite  moment ;  but  if 
faithfully  prosecuted,  it  is  not  difficult  of  solution. 
Is  it  your  supreme  desire  and  endeavour  so  to 
pass  through  things  temporal,  that  you  lose  not  the 
things  that  are  eternal  I  In  order  to  gain  these, 
and  to  save  your  souls,  are  your  principles,  your 
duties,  and  your  hopes,  as  Christians,  faithfully 
cherished  and  regarded  1  And  is  every  worldly  ob- 
ject pursued  and  enjoyed  in  subordination  to  the 
infinitely  higher  objects  of  a  spiritual  and  immortal 
life  1  Whatever  temporal  advantages  you  may  pos- 
sess— of  treasure,  of  talents,  or  of  station — are 
they  all  employed  and  all  enjoyed  as  the  means  of 
aiding  you  in  the  attainment  of  those  true  joys  of 
your  heavenly  inheritance  where  your  hearts  are 
fixed  1 

Brethren,  let  us  examine  ourselves  in  reference 
to  this  all-important  subject.  What  is  the  object  of 
our  supreme  desire  and  pursuit — the  favour  of  God, 
or  the  joys  of  the  world — the  things  of  time,  or  the 
concerns  of  eternity "!  If  you  should  find  that  the 
world  supremely  engrosses  you — that  your  thoughts, 
your  time,  your  talents,  your  exertions,  all  are  oc- 
cupied with  the  means  of  your  temporal  advance- 
ment, and  with  the  enjoyment  of  your  worldly 


SELF-EXAMINATION.  155 

advantages — or  if  your  attention  to  the  pursuits  of 
the  world,  or  your  indulgence  in  any  of  its  enjoy- 
ments, weakens  your  pious  feelings,  diminishes 
your  relish  for  the  exercises  of  religion,  and  re- 
tards your  progress  in  the  spiritual  life — then,  rest 
assured,  your  salvation  is  endangered.  If  death 
should  find  you  thus  devoted  and  thus  engrossed— 
and  death,  remember,  may  come  when  least  ex- 
pected— he  will  summon  you  to  an  account  which 
you  are  wholly  unprepared  to  render — he  will  hurry 
you  to  that  eternity  whose  joys  you  have  neglected 
for  the  transitory  gratifications  of  the  world,  and 
whose  terrors  therefore  you  must  sustain.  Lose 
no  time,  therefore;  search  and  try  your  ways; 
and  from  the  service  of  a  sinful  and  perishing 
world,  turn  to  the  service  of  the  living  God. 

2.  Another  serious  object  of  scrutiny  and  inquiry 
should  be — Whether  we  entertain  correct  views  of 
our  spiritual  condition. 

Numerous  are  the  causes  which  conspire  to  con- 
ceal from  us  our  real  spiritual  character.  The 
powers  of  the  human  mind  capable  of  attaining 
such  exalted  heights  of  science,  and  of  accomplish- 
ing such  stupendous  plans  of  civil  polity,  and  of 
directing  and  ruling  the  strength  and  passions  of 
the  multitude  to  the  objects  of  glory  and  ambition, 
tend  to  cherish  the  sentiments  of  arrogance  and 
pride,  so  natural  to  the  human  heart ;  and  while 
wealth  or  honour,  that  appears  to  be  the  fruit  of 
our  plans  and  exertions,  elevates  us  in  our  own 
estimation,  and  gives  us  consequence  and  influence 
among  those  around  us,  it  is  not  easy  to  admit  any 
views  of  our  character  and  state  but  those  which 
flatter  our  vanity  and  self-love.     The  pride  indeed 

Vol.  III.  ^0 


^Oi  SELF-EXAmNATIOx^ 

of  the  human  heart — a  passion  not  confined  to  the 
ranks  of  the  rich  and  the  mighty,  but  operating 
with  equal  force,  thougli  in  a  different  manner,  in 
all  states  and  circumstances  of  mankind — reluc- 
tantly admits  the  conclusion  that  we  are  fallen 
beings,  obnoxious  to  divine  justice  on  account  of 
our  shis,  and  incapable  of  rescuing  ourselves  from 
the  bondage  of  corruption. 

And  yet  this  is  our  real  state  and  character. 
"  The  carnal  mind,"  says  an  inspired  apostle,  the 
mind  of  the  flesh,  misdirected  or  carried  to  excess, 
"  is  enmity  against  God  ;"*  and  "  there  is  no  man 
that  liveth  and  sinneth  not."t  "  We  have  all  gone 
out  of  the  way  ;"J  and  "  our  sufficiency"  for  the 
work  of  our  salvation  "  is  of  God  alone."§  Are  we 
sensible  of  these  important  truths'?  Do  we  so 
realize  them  as  to  make  them  the  principles  of  our 
conduct'!  Under  the  deep  impression  of  their  im- 
portance, are  we  led  to  humble  ourselves  before 
God,  "  meekly  acknowledging  our  vileness,"  and 
imploring  him  to  "  make  haste  and  help  us  f  Let 
us  search  and  try  whether  these  are  the  views 
of  our  spiritual  character ;  for  mitil  we  are  sen- 
sible of  our  guilty  and  sinful  state,  we  shall  not 
apply  for  the  means  of  deliverance.  It  is  a  maxim 
of  aommon  sense—"  The  whole  need  not  a  phy- 
sician, but  they  that  are  sick."||  Christ  "  came  not 
to  call  the  righteous,"  (those  who  think  themselves 
so,)  "  but  sinners  to  repentance. "H  The  convic- 
tion that  the  disease  of  sin  infects  us,  will  alone 
lead  us  to  seek  for  the  remedies  that  are  to  be 
found  in  the  mercy  and  grace  of  a  compassionate 
and  Almighty  Redeemer ;  and  not  until  we  feel  the 

*  Rom.  viii.  7.         |  Psalm  Ixxxix.  48.        |  Rom.  iii.  12. 
§  2  Cor.  iii.  5.         ||  Matt.  ix.  12.  if  Matt.  ix.  13. 


-SELF-EXAMINATION.  155 

burden  of  sin,  will  we  arise  at  the  call  of  our  mer- 
ciful Lord,  and  "  weary  and  heavy  laden,"  go  to 
him  to  receive  "  rest." 

3.  "  Let  us  search  and  try  our  ways,"  bringing  to 
our  recollection  and  humbly  confessing  the  sins 
which  have  marked  our  lives. 

The  confession  of  our  sins  is  necessary  lo  par- 
don. "  He  that  covereth  his  sins"  (is  an  inspired 
declaration)  "shall  not  prosper:  but  whoso  con- 
fesseth  and  forsaketh  them  shall  have  mercy."* 
The  more  minutely  we  bring  them  to  our  recollec- 
tion, and  view  them  under  all  those  circumstances 
which  may  have  increased  their  guilt,  the  more 
deep  and  lively  will  be  that  contrition  with  which, 
on  account  of  them,  we  shall  humble  ourselves  be- 
fore God,  and  the  more  clear  and  consolatory  will 
be  our  hopes  of  pardon,  and  the  more  diligent  and 
watchful  shall  we  be,  lest  the  same  transgressions 
hereafter  defile  our  consciences.  A  faithful  scru- 
tiny into  our  hearts  and  lives,  and  the  humble  ac- 
knowledgment and  confession  of  our  offences, 
though  in  some  degree  painful  exercises,  bring 
relief  to  the  conscience,  ease  the  soul  of  the  burden 
of  her  guilt,  and  refresh  her  with  the  sense  of  the 
divine  mercy. 

In  this  scrutiny,  then,  into  our  character  and 
lives,  let  us  seriously  and  immediately  engaf^e. 
"  Know  thyself"  was  the  maxim  which  heathen 
philosophy  consecrated.  In  reference  to  our  moral 
and  spiritual  condition,  this  knowledge  is  the  most 
important  which  we  can  obtain.  There  will  be  no 
confession  of  faults  until  they  are  discerned,  and 
no  reformation  or  improvement  until  our  deficiences 

*  Pfov.  xxviii.  13. 


156  SELF-EXAMINATION. 

are  felt.  In  the  sight  of  God  there  can  be  no  true 
penitence  which  is  not  founded  on  a  sense  of  our 
transgressions  against  him,  and  which  is  not  ac- 
companied with  the  acknowledgment  of  them  in 
prayers  for  his  mercy. 

And  until  this  mercy  is  exercised  upon  us,  bre- 
thren, we  are  in  a  state  of  condemnation,  exposed 
to  the  justice  of  that  holy  and  Almighty  Being  who 
hath  denounced  indignation  and  wrath  against 
every  soul  of  man  that  doeth  evil. 

Let  us  then  "  search  and  try  our  ways ;"  let  us 
bring  to  view,  as  far  as  possible,  all  our  omissions 
of  duty,  all  our  violations  of  the  laws  of  our  God. 
Let  us  conduct  this  scrutiny  as  in  the  presence  of 
jHim  that  searcheth  the  hearts  and  trieth  the  reins 
of  the  children  of  men,  and  who  cannot  be  de- 
ceived, and  who  will  not  be  mocked.  It  is  in  vain 
to  attempt  to  hide  from  him  the  transgressions 
which  privacy  and  retirement  may  have  concealed 
from  the  view  of  men.  Who  indeed  can  fully  un- 
derstand his  errors^  Who  can  detect  his  secret 
faults'?  Who  can  bring  to  remembrance  all  the 
transgressions  which  may  have  marked  his  life? 
Search  then  thou,  O  God,  and  try  the  ground  of 
our  hearts  ;  prove  us,  and  examine  our  ways  :  and 
when  we  come  unto  thee  confessing  our  manifold 
iniquities,  look  upon  us,  we  beseech  thee,  after  the 
multitude  of  thy  mercies,  and  blot  out  our  sins. 

4.  But,  my  brethren,  another  subject  of  our 
faithful  scrutiny  should  be — Whether  it  is  our  cour 
stant  desire  and  endeavour  to  be  renewed  in  the 
spirit  of  our  minds,  and  to  become  holy  in  heart 
and  life. 

This  is  the  great  end,  and  this  is  the  only  evi- 


SELF-EXAMINATION.  157 

dence  of  genuine  repentance.  The  most  humble 
expressions  of  our  unworthiness,  and  the  lowest 
humiliation  under  a  sense  of  our  transgressions, 
can  be  of  no  avail  in  the  sight  of  God,  excbpt  as 
they  are  an  evidence  of  that  deep  detestation  of 
sin  which  engages  us  in  the  sincere  and  diligent 
renunciation  of  it,  and  in  the  pursuit  of  that  uni- 
versal holiness  which,  by  conforming  us  to  his 
image,  can  alone  prepare  us  for  the  enjoyment  of 
the  favour  of  God. 

In  this  respect,  then,  "  let  us  search  and  try  our 
ways :"  let  us  compare  the  dispositions  of  our 
hearts  and  the  habits  of  our  lives,  our  daily  charac- 
ter and  conduct,  with  the  standard  of  holiness  pre- 
scribed by  the  Gospel.  Every  disposition  which  is 
at  variance  with  the  Christian  temper,  it  should  be 
our  constant  endeavour,  through  divine  grace,  to 
subdue — every  habit,  contrary  to  the  purity  of  the 
Christian  character,  to  renounce — and  every  prac- 
tice forbidden  by  the  divine  law,  and  inconsistent 
with  our  Christian  profession,  utterly  to  forsake. 

My  brethren,  are  we  thus  diligently  engaged  in 
the  great  business  of  our  Christian  calling — morti- 
fying and  correcting  our  evil  tempers,  and,  through 
the  renewing  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  conforming  our 
hearts  and  lives  to  the  requisitions  of  the  laws  of 
Godi  It  is  not  sufficient  that  we  have  embraced 
the  Christian  profession :  it  is  not  sufficient  that, 
in  the  sense  of  our  unworthiness,  we  have  humbled 
ourselves  before  God,  and  cherish  a  lively  depen- 
dence on  his  mercy  through  a  Redeemer  :  it  is  not 
sufficient  that  we  diligently  attend  on  the  means  of 
grace.  These  exercises  and  acts  are  designed  only 
as  instruments  of  our  renovation,  by  which  we  may 
he  enabled  to  put  off  the  body  of  sin  to  which  we 


158  SELF-EXAMINATION. 

are  subject,  and  to  "  put  on  the  new  man,  which 
after  God  is  created  in  righteousness  and  true  ho- 
liness;"* and  unless  they  are  thus  employed  by 
us,  they  are  neither  acceptable  to  God,  nor  of  any 
avail  to  our  salvation.  All  our  religious  profes- 
sions, and  all  our  religious  exercises,  must  be 
brought  to  this  test — Whether  they  have  effected 
a  holy  change  in  our  hearts,  and  engaged  us  in  the 
constant  renunciation  of  all  sinful  dispositions  and 
practices,  and  the  faithful  discharge  of  all  our 
Christian  duties. 

Let  us  search  then  and  try,  brethren,  whether 
our  religious  exercises  and  professions  will  stand 
this  test.  Is  it  our  supreme  desire,  our  fervent 
prayer,  our  constant  endeavour,  to  obtain  the  vic- 
tory over  every  sinful  passion,  to  renounce  entirely 
every  thing  that  is  evil,  and  to  be  holy  in  heart  and 
life,  conformed  to  the  image  and  obedient  in  all 
things  to  the  will  of  our  heavenly  Master  ]  Does 
the  imperfect  progress  which  we  make  in  obtaining 
the  victory  over  sin,  and  in  the  exalted  graces  and 
duties  of  the  spiritual  life,  while  it  humbles  us 
before  God  in  the  acknowledgment  of  our  weak- 
ness and  in  supplication  for  his  succour,  excite  us 
to  more  circumspection,  more  diligence,  more 
watchfulness,  more  zeal  in  the  great  work  of  our 
Christian  calling  1 

My  brethren,  the  Christian  life  is  not  a  life  of 
indolence.  It  does  not  admit  of  the  wilful  indul- 
gence of  any  sinful  passion.  It  is  not  compatible 
with  the  habitual  practice  of  any  sin.  Heaven  is 
the  glorious  prize  for  which  the  Christian  is  to 
contend ;  and  heaven,  infinitely  rich,  and  full,  and 
exalted  in  its  rewards,  will  not  be  awarded  but  to 

*  Eph.  iv.  24. 


SELF-EXAMINATION*  159 

those  who,  in  their  conquest,  by  divine  grace,  of 
their  sinful  passions,  and  in  the  attainment  of  the 
Christian  virtues,  are  born  of  God,  and  thus  made 
meet  for  the  enjoyment  of  his  celestial  glories. 

5.  With  this  general  inquiry  as  to  our  progress 
in  the  renunciation  of  sin,  and  in  the  attainment  of 
the  Christian  graces,  ought  to  be  connected  a  scru- 
tiny as  to  the  particular  sin  to  which  we  may  be 
the  most  prone,  or  the  Christian  virtue  in  which 
we  may  be  the  most  deficient. 

This  scrutiny  is  essential  to  our  obtaining  the 
mastery  over  that  sin  to  which  we  are  most  prone, 
and  to  the  full  attainment  of  the  virtue  in  which 
we  may  be  most  deficient :  and  toilful  devotion  to 
any  sin,  and  voluntary  deficiency  in  any  Christian 
grace,  will  disqualify  us  for  the  kingdom  of  God. 
Here  then  is  a  most  important  scrutiny,  and  de- 
manding peculiar  fidelity  and  perseverance ;  for 
self-love  will  be  apt  to  conceal  from  us  the  sinful 
passion  to  which  we  are  the  most  addicted,  or  the 
deficiency  in  any  spiritual  grace  which  most  strongly 
marks  us.  Let  us  search  and  try,  then,  where  is 
our  weakness,  and  wh'ere  is  our  deficiency.  We 
may  abstain  from  one  sinful  passion,  and  indulge 
in  another :  we  may  shun  one  vice,  and  rush  into 
its  opposite.  We  may  cherish,  for  example,  pu- 
rity, and  yet  indulge  revenge;  and  may  avoid  ex- 
travagance, and  yet  be  enslaved  by  covetousness. 
We  may  distribute  our  wealth  in  those  channels 
where  it  will  be  least  wanted,  but  where  it  will 
advance  our  reputation — some  civil  and  temporal 
project — and  withhold  it  where  it  will  do  the  most 
good,  but  the  least  redound  to  our  credit — plans 
for  advancing  the  spiritual  happiness  of  our  fellow- 


160  SELF-EXAMINATION. 

men.  Wc  may  avoid  all  excess  in  worldly  plea-' 
sure,  and  yet  indulge  a  morose,  unsocial,  and  cen^ 
sorious  temper.  We  may  humble  ourselves  before 
God  in  the  most  profound  expressions  of  our  un- 
worthiness,  and  yet  display  towards  our  fellow-men 
a  proud,  domineering,  and  tyrannical  spirit.  We 
may  inveigh  against  worldly  pride  and  ostentation, 
and  yet  we  may  delight  in  the  incense  of  spiritual 
flattery.  In  all  these  respects  we  may  deceive 
ourselves — we  may  even  deceive  the  world.  But 
let  us  remember,  we  cannot  deceive  our  God.  He 
will  search  and  prove  us.  And  that  we  may  escape 
his  condemning  scrutiny,  let  us  search  and  try  our- 
selves :  let  us,  in  the  spirit  of  humility  and  prayer, 
faithfully  examine  our  hearts  and  conduct ;  and 
whatever  sinful  passion  we  may  have  most  fre- 
quently indulged,  let  that  be  the  object  of  our  most 
jealous  caution;  to  whatever  evil  temper  vve  may 
be  the  most  prone,  against  this  let  us  most  sedu- 
lously guard  ;  and  in  whatever  Christian  grace  we 
may  have  been  the  most  deficient,  this  let  us  che- 
rish and  pursue  with  increased  ardour  and  zeal. 

6.  Let  us  search  and  tl-y  ourselves  as  to  our 
attendance  on  those  means  of  grace  which  are 
essential  to  our  progress  in  the  spiritual  life. 

Are  we  constant  in  our  intercourse  with  heaven, 
by  supplications  and  praises  in  private  and  in  our 
families^  Are  we  uniform  in  our  attendance  on 
the  public  worship  of  God,  not  only  as  a  reluctant 
offering  once  on  the  day  devoted  to  him,  but  in  the 
regular  afternoon  as  well  as  morning  service  of  the 
sanctuary  \  Is  our  behaviour  in  his  courts  charac- 
terized by  reverence,  attention,  and  devotion  \  Do 
the  prayers  and  praises  by  which  we  hold  comraur 


SELF-EXAMINATION.  J61 

liion  with  our  God,  occupy  the  chief  place  in  our 
estimation  1  and  hence  do  we,  as  we  have  oppor- 
tunity, worship  God  in  his  sanctuary,  on  the  weekly 
days  of  supplication  and  praise  1  Admitted  into 
covenant  with  him  by  the  sacramejrit  of  baptism, 
and  having  ratified  our  baptismal  engagements  in 
the  apostolic  ordinance  appointed  for  the  purpose, 
do  we  continue  in  the  unity  of  the  church  by  com- 
munion with  its  authorized  ministry,  and  show  forth 
the  death  of  our  Lord,  commemorate  his  love  to- 
wards us,  and  secure  our  title  to  his  mercy  and 
grace,  in  the  holy  feast  of  the  supper  1  When  we 
behold  the  body  and  blood  of  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ  symbolically  given  and  shed  for  us  sinners, 
are  our  hearts  humbled  in  contrition ;  and  in  the 
impulses  of  holy  gratitude  and  love,  do  we  offer 
ourselves,  our  souls  and  bodies,  a  spiritual  sacri- 
fice to  him  who  was  sacrificed  for  us  1 

These,  brethren,  are  most  important  inquiries : 
for  with  the  means  and  ordinances  which  he  hath 
prescribed — and  who  shall  say  unto  him.  Why  dost 
thou  this? — it  hath  pleased  God  to  connect  his 
mercy  and  gmce :  and  if  the  means  and  pledges 
of  these  gifts  are  neglected,  or  unworthily  re- 
ceived by  us,  we  cannot  enjoy  the  gifts  which  they 
convey. 

7.  Lastly.  It  should  be  the  subject  of  our  most 
solicitous  inquiry — Whether  our  hopes  of  salvation 
are  founded  only  on  the  merits  and  grace  of  our 
Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

"  There  is  salvation  in  no  other.  There  is  no 
other  name  by  which  we  can  be  saved."*    This  m 

*  Acts  iv.  12. 

Vol.  m.  21 


162  SELF-EXAMINATION. 

the  decree  of  the  Being  who  made  us,  of  the  Al~ 
mighty  Sovereign  who  rules  us,  and  of  the  eternal 
Judge  whom  we  have  offended,  and  at  whose  tri- 
bunal we  are  to  receive  our  doom.  Unremitted 
and  faithful  as  we  may  and  ought  to  be  in  strug- 
gling with  our  evil  habits,  in  resisting  temptatioi^- 
and  in  renouncing  every  sinful  practice ;  diligent 
and  constant  as  we  ought  to  be  in  the  use  of  the 
means  of  grace,  in  adding  to  our  "  faith,  virtue ; 
and  to  virtue,  knowledge  ;  and  to  knowledge,  tem- 
perance ;  and  to  temperance,  patience  ;  and  to  pa- 
tience, brotherly  kindness  ;  and  to  brotherly  kind- 
ness, charity  ;"*  yet  we  must  renounce  all  depen- 
dence on  our  own  righteousness  as  the  meritori- 
ous cause,  and  on  our  own  strength  as  the  effec- 
tual mean,  of  our  salvation ;  and  acknowledge,  that 
through  the  mercy  of  God,  and  by  the  merits  and 
grace  of  our  Lord  Jesus  Christ  only,  are  we  jus- 
tified, sanctified,  and  saved.  We  are,  at  the  best, 
but  unprofitable  servants.  Heaven,  in  its  rewards, 
is  as  far  above  our  merits  as  the  attainment  of  it  is 
above  our  unassisted  strength.  "  Not  unto  us,  O 
Lord,  not  unto  us,  but  unto  thy  name"  be  the  glory 
and  the  praise. 

My  brethren,  as  sinners,  we  are  all  obnoxious  to 
divine  justice ;  and  our  only  way  of  escape,  is  to 
turn  from  our  iniquities  to  the  service  of  the  living 
God.  We  know  these  truths ;  we  know  also  that 
it  is  of  infinite  moment  that  we  act  upon  them. 
Why  then  do  we  delay  I  Death  may  find  us  thus 
delaying — (how  many  has  it  found  thus  delaying  X) 
' — and  then  eternity  will  receive  us  unprepared.  In 
that  eternity  there  is  no  pardon,  no  mercy,  no 

*  2  Pet.  i..  5-7, 


SELF-EXAMINATION.  16S 

grace.  "  Now  is  the  accepted  time,  now  is  the  day 
of  salvation."*  Pardon,  mercy,  grace,  are  now  of- 
fered to  us  :  now  then  let  us  secure  them.  "  Let 
us  return  unto  the  Lord,  and  he  will  be  gracious 
unto  us,  and  to  our  God,  and  he  will  abundantly 
pardon  os."t 

*  2  Cor.  vi.  3.  t  Isa.  Iv.  7. 


SERMON   XIV. 


THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE. 


Acts  xxiv.  25. 

Go  thy  way  for  this  time ;  when  I  have  a  convenient  season,  I 
will  call  for  thee. 

Delay  is  the  fatal  rock  on  which  thousands  make 
shipwreck  of  their  everlasting  hopes.  Infatuated 
man  is  active,  diligent,  anxious  in  every  concern 
but  the  one  which,  from  its  infinite  and  everlasting 
importance,  should  engross  his  most  vigorous  and 
supreme  attention.  Mark  his  conduct  in  the  man- 
agement of  his  worldly  concerns,  and  in  the  pursuit 
of  the  objects  of  wealth,  of  honour,  or  of  pleasure. 
You  would  suppose  that  these  objects  were  most 
important  and  dignified  in  their  nature ;  that  they 
were  unalloyed  and  exalted  in  the  enjoyment  which 
they  afforded  ;  and  that,  placed  above  the  changes 
of  time,  they  survived  its  exterminating  ravages. 
Little  would  you  think  that  these  objects  are  often 
worthless  and  degrading  in  their  nature,  and  that 
the  highest  gratification  which  they  afford  is  tran- 
sitory and  unsatisfying.  Mark,  on  the  contrary,, 
the  reluctance  which  men  discover  seriously  to  at- 
tend to  their  spiritual  interests,  the  difficulty  with 
which  they  are  awakened  to  a  sense  of  the  import- 
ance and  value  of  religion  and  virtue,  and  the 
readiness  with  which  they  permit  the  most  trifling 
objects  to  displace  from  their  thoughts  and  atten- 


THE  DELAYS  Of  REPEJ^TANCE.  165 

don  the  concerns  of  their  souls.  You  would  sup- 
pose that  these  concerns  were  designed  to  occupy 
only  a  small  share  of  their  thoughts,  and  that  they 
are  to  be  secured  by  some  slight  and  superficial 
exertions.  Little  would  you  think  that  they  involve 
every  thing  dear  to  our  present  and  our  future  and 
eternal  peace,  and  require  the  vigorous  exertion  of 
all  our  powers,  the  devoted  attention  of  our  lives. 

Sometimes,  indeed,  conscience,  touched  by  the 
secret  energies  of  divine  grace,  or  awakened  by 
some  alarming  or  afflictive  dispensation  of  divine 
Providence,  will  set  before  the  careless  and  thought- 
less sinner,  in  just  and  awful  colours,  his  danger 
and  his  guilt,  his  obligations  to  the  Almighty  Author 
of  his  being  and  of  all  his  mercies,  and  the  infinite 
importance  of  securing  the  salvation  of  his  soul. 
Alas!  enchained  to  sensual  objects,  and  devoted 
to  the  gratification  of  his  passions,  he  dismisses 
the  holy  considerations  which  conscience  awakens 
in  his  soul,  with  the  same  pretext  with  which  Felix, 
the  Roman  governor,  trembling  under  the  powerful 
reasoning  of  St.  Paul,  dismissed  the  unpleasant 
monitor — "  Go  thy  way  for  this  time  ;  when  I  have  a 
more  convenient  season,  I  will  send  for  thee."  Yes 
— men  delay  to  a  future,  and  as  they  fondly  hope, 
more  convenient  season,  an  attention  to  their  in- 
terests, to  the  salvation  of  their  souls. 

But  consider  the  guilt  in  which,  by  this  delay, 
they  involve  themselves,  and  the  dangerous  folhj 
of  their  conduct. 

Consider  the  guilt  of  this  delay. 

Conscience  adiFonishes  us,  and  reason  confirms 
the  alarming  conviction,  that  we  are  exposed,  by 
the  violations  of  the  laws  of  our  Maker  and  our 
Judge,  by  our  numerous  and  aggravated  transgres- 


166       THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE. 

sions',  to  liis  just  and  tremendous  displeasure  ;  and 
yet.  sinners  as  we  are,  guilty  and  condemned,  we 
are  uftered,  by  the  very  Maker  and  Judge  against 
whom  we  have  rebelled,  a  glorious  and  everlasting 
salvation.  Ineftable  and  surpassing  in  his  forbear- 
ance and  mercy,  he  presses  us  to  attend  to  our 
everlasting  interests  as  a  concern  of  supreme  im- 
portance, and  invites  us  to  accept,  through  the 
merits  of  that  eternal  Son  whom  he  gave,  and  who 
ofllered  himself  for  our  redemption,  the  full  remis- 
sion of  the  guilt  which,  by  our  transgressions  against 
him,  we  had  incurred.  And  he  urges  and  enforces 
his  invitations  by  the  most  exalted  promises,  and 
the  most  fearful  denunciations.  And  under  these 
astonishing  displays  of  mercy  on  the  part  of  our 
Almighty  Sovereign,  what  is  frequently,  may  I  not 
say  generally,  our  conduct  l  Urged  by  the  solici- 
tations of  the  world,  yielding  to  the  impulses  of 
our  sensual  passions,  we  postpone  our  attention  to 
the  concerns  of  our  souls,  and  neglect  (strange 
and  awful  infatuation !)  the  overtures  of  mercy 
from  our  Redeemer  and  God.  Oh !  let  us  pause 
and  reflect  on  the  aggravated  guilt  which  by  this 
conduct  we  incur.  Every  day  that  we  delay  our 
return  to  God  adds  new  sins  to  the  former  cata- 
logue, and  increases  the  guilt  of  our  impenitence 
and  rebellion.  We  delay  our  repentance,  as  if  we 
could  with  impunity  indulge  in  forgetfulness  of 
God  and  neglect  of  the  offers  of  salvation  which 
he  graciously  extends  to  us.  But  the  least  con- 
sideration will  convince  us  that,  by  thus  despising 
his  forbearance,  we  are  increasing  the  load  of  our 
guilt,  and  treasuring  up  wrath  against  the  day  of 
wrath  and  revelation  of  his  righteous  judgment. 
The  mercy  which,  by  thus  postponing  an  attention 


THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE.        167 

to  the  concerns  of  salvation,  we  contemn,  is  the 
mercy  of  that  Saviour  who  willingly  and  cheerfully 
gave  himself  for  us.  Would  not  gratitude  dictate 
an  immediate,  a  cheerful,  a  complete  devotion  of 
ourselves  to  the  benignant  Redeemer  who  thus 
undertook  the  dismaying  work  of  our  redemption "? 
What  greater  insensibility  and  ingratitude  can  be 
evinced,  than  when  we  delay  our  acceptance  of  the 
blessings  which  he  urges  upon  us — the  complete 
remission  of  our  sins,  the  enlivening  joys  of  his 
favour,  and  the  everlasting  bliss  of  his  heavenly 
kingdom  1  Every  noble,  tender,  and  generous  feel- 
ing dictates  our  immediate  entrance  on  that  course 
of  holy  obedience  and  devotion  to  our  God,  where- 
by only  we  can  testify  our  sensibility  to  his  exalted 
love,  and  secure  our  present  and  everlasting  feli- 
city. 

We  postpone  our  return  to  God  until  some  more 
convenient  season — that  is,  until  we  have  accom- 
plished every  scheme  of  worldly  emolument  and 
ambition  which  we  have  formed,  and  until  we  have 
gratified  to  the  full  the  sensual  propensities  which 
now  solicit  indulgence.  Then,  when  we  can  no 
longer  serve  the  world,  we  will  serve  our  God : 
.then,  when  our  passions  are  cloyed,  when  our  de- 
sires refuse  any  longei^  to  be  awakened  at  the  call 
of  ambition  and  pleasure,  we  will  devote  the  lan- 
guid and  expiring  emotions  of  our  souls  to  him  who 
most  justly  demands  their  most  pure  and  noble 
fervours.  What  conduct  more  dishonourable  as  it 
regards  ourselves — more  insulting  in  respect  to 
God  !  Will  he  not  in  just  judgment  execute  upon 
us  the  fearful  sentence  of  his  wrath — "  Because  I 
have  called  and  ye  refused ;  I  have  stretched  out 
my  hand,  and  no  man  regarded:  but  ye  have  set 


168  THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE. 

at  nought  all  my  counsel,  and  would  none  of  my 
reproof:  I  also  will  laugh  at  your  calamity:  I  will 
mock  when  your  fear  cometh ;  when  your  fear 
Cometh  as  desolation,  and  your  destruction  cometh 
as  a  whirlwind ;  when  distress  and  anguish  cometh 
upon  you."* 

Men  delay  to  a  future^  and  as  they  fondly  hope, 
more  convenient  seasonj  an  attention  to  their  eter- 
nal concerns. 

Consider  the  folly  of  this  conduct. 

We  delay  to  some  future  season  a  concern  which, 
as  it  is  of  infinite  importance,  should  be  immediately 
secured  ;  and  we  delay,  under  the  alarming  uneer- 
tainty  whether  any  time  more  favourable  for  an 
attention  to  it  than  the  present  will  occur.  These 
are  the  two  considerations  which  establish  the  folly 
of  our  conduct. 

We  delay  to  some  future  season  a  concern  which, 
as  it  is  of  infinite  importance,  ought  to  be  imme- 
diately secured. 

What  will  we  put  in  comparison  with  that  exalted 
salvation  which  God  presses  on  our  immediate  ac- 
ceptance 1  What  will  we  put  in  the  balance  against 
those  everlasting  interests  which  we  are  called  to 
secure  1  The  salvation  offered  to  us  by  an  infinitely 
merciful  and  gracious  God,  contains  blessings  of 
transcendent  value,  calculated  to  purify  and  exalt 
our  natures;  commensurate  with  our  most  noble 
and  lofty  desires ;  pure  and  enduring  as  that  in- 
finite fountain  of  being  from  whom  they  proceed. 
A  salvation  which  confers  on  men  the  enlivening 
favour  of  their  reconciled  God  ;  which  redeems  the 
heart  from  all  degrading  and  corrupting  passions ; 
which  implants  in  the  soul  those  divine  and  celes- 

*  Prov.  i.  34—37. 


THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE.  16^ 

tial  virtues  that  confer  unfailing  and  everlasting 
peace — -one  would  suppose,  would  awaken  their 
most  eager  and  solicitous   desires,   and   engross 
their  immediate  exertions.    And  yet  they  postpone 
-an  attention  to  this  divine  and  exalted  salvation; 
they  delay  until  some  future  season  the  pursuit  of 
these  inestimable  blessings.     And  how  are  we  to 
account  for  this  criminal  infatuation?    What  are 
the  objects  which,  displacing  these  infinitely  im- 
portant concerns  from  our  minds,  engage  our  un- 
divided pursuit?    Are  they  objects  of  more  value? 
Are  they  even  of  equal  importance  ?     Oh !  let  us 
not  impiously  insult  the  grace  and  mercy  of  God ; 
let  us  not  degrade  the  joys  of  his  favour,  the  in- 
estimable blessings  of  his  salvation,   by  bringing 
them  for  a  moment  into  comparison  with  those 
vain  and  perishing  gratifications  which,  alas !  we 
often  place  supreme  in  our  affeetions  and  our  pur- 
suit. 

Men  delay  the  securing  the  interests  of  their  im- 
mortal souls.  Does  some  more  important  and  va- 
luable object  engage  their  attention  ?  Alas !  "  what 
will  it  profit  a  man,  if  l^^  gain  the  whole  world, 
and  lose  his  own  soul  ?"*  Will  that  world,  whose 
honours,  emoln«*^"ts,  and  pleasures  men  prefer 
before  tbc;  peace,  the  celestial  purity,  the  divine 
perfection  of  tlieir  souls,  rescue  them  from  those 
pangs  of  an  agitated  and  guilty  spirit,  by  which 
Crod  in  righteous  judgments  here  vindicates  his  au- 
thority ;  or  save  them  from  those  infinitely  more 
intolerable  and  those  endless  torments  to  which, 
if  the  voice  of  conscience  be  not  deceptive,  and 
the  word  of  God  be  not  false,  they  will  be  con- 
signed at  the  day  of  retribution  ?  At  that  "  day"— - 
*  Mark  viii.  36, 

Vol.111.  22 


170       THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE. 

the  day  characterized  as  the  day  of  the  fierce  anger 
of  Jehovah,  when  the  heavens  depart  away  as  a 
scroll,  when  the  elements  melt  with  fervent  heat, 
when  the  earth  and  all  it  contains  shall  be  burnt 
up — will  the  recollection  of  those  sensual  pleasures 
and  pursuits,  from  which  they  are  for  ever  sepa- 
rated, sustain  their  trembling  spirits  in  the  midst 
of  a  departing  world — in  the  throng  of  the  assem- 
bled myriads  of  mankind — in  the  view  of  the  book 
opened  to  proclaim  all  their  iniquities — before  the 
Judge,  about  to  decide,  with  the  voice  of  inexorable 
justice,  their  eternal  doom  1     Alas  !  the  objects  of 
their  sensual  desire  and  pursuit,  while  they  deluded 
them  with  the  phantoms  of  enjoyment,  and  per- 
suaded them  to  contemn  substantial  bliss,  were 
nourishing  the  worm  that  never  dies,  and  kindling 
the  fire  that  never  will  be  quenched :  and,  infatu- 
ated  mortals !   they  find  that  they  have  bartered 
celestial  joys  for  that  worm  that  never  dies — that 
they  have  exchanged  celestial  pleasures  for  that 
fire  that  never  will  be  quenched. 

But  perhaps  they  who  thus  delay  an  attention  to 
the  things  that  belong  lu  thoir  eternal  peace,  would 
arrest  the  imputation  of  groaz  foUy  which  this  con- 
duct fixes  upon  them,  by  the  pleu  that  they  admit 
the  immense  importance  of  salvation,  ana  thp  infi- 
nite value  of  the  soul ;  and  that  they  intend  to  de- 
vote to  their  spiritual  and  immortal  interests  all 
the  attention  which  is  necessary  to  secure  them : 
they  only  delay  this  business  to  a  more  convenient 
season.  And  do  they  then  hold  in  their  hands  the 
course  of  events,  so  that  they  can  command  a  sea- 
son more  favourable  than  the  present  for  the  care 
of  iheir  souls  and  the  securing  of  their  immortal 
interests?    Will  the  splendour  of  wealth  at  any 


THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE.        171 

future  period  cease  to  dazzle  l  Will  the  charms  of 
pleasure,  to  which  they  are  now  devoted,  cease  to 
entice  1  Will  the  heights  of  honour,  at  any  future 
period,  cease  to  inflame  their  imaginations  and 
awaken  their  ambition  ]  Alas !  every  day,  by  add- 
ing new  force  to  their  passions,  places  new  ob- 
stacles in  the  path  of  piety  and  virtue :  every  in- 
dulgence of  sinful  passion  rivets  more  closely  its 
chains.  Sensual  desires  and  emotions,  long  in- 
dulged, become  so  deeply  and  intimately  incorpo- 
rated with  the  soul,  that  it  is  almost  as  difficult  to 
renounce  them,  as  for  the  Ethiopian  to  change  his 
skin  and  the  leopard  his  spots.  With  these  con- 
siderations, then,  forcing  themselves  upon  us,  will 
we  cherish  the  absurd,  may  I  not  say,  the  insane 
hope,  that  at  some  future  period  the  world  will 
present  to  us  fewer  charms,  and  our  passions  dimi- 
nished strength  l 

Admit  for  a  moment  the  reasonableness  of  these 
expectations.  What  is  the  business  before  us  1  Is 
it  one  of  easy,  of  mere  human  achievement  I  Look 
at  the  work  to  which  we  are  called ;  no  less  than 
that  of  renovating  corrupt  nature,  of  crucifying  the 
body  of  sin.  How  closely  and  firmly  riveted  to  the 
heart  are  the  passions  and  indulgences  which  must 
be  renounced  !  How  holy  and  exalted  the  virtues 
which  must  be  acquired  !  How  universal  and  strict 
the  acts  of  obedience  which  must  be  performed ! 
How  many  temptations  will  assail  our  hearts,  weak, 
and  disposed  to  yield  to  them !  Let  us  bring  home 
to  our  minds  these  considerations,  and  we  shall  be 
satisfied  that,  in  the  business  of  salvation,  we  shall 
need  support  and  strength  incalculably  beyond 
those  which  our  own  powers  will  afford.  And  are 
we  sure  that,  at  any  future  period,  the  omnipotent 


172        THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE. 

Being  whose  merciful  forbearance  we  now  disre^ 
gard,  and  whose  mercy  and  grace  have  been  so- 
long  resisted,  will  afford  us  those  divine  succourSy 
without  which  we  can  do  nothing,  without  whose 
co-operating  energy  our  own  resolutions  will  be 
ineffectual  I  Hath  not  the  sacred  voice  of  his  jus- 
tice declared,  that  his  Spirit  shall  not  always  strive 
with  the  disobedient  and  impenitent!  that  he  who^ 
being  often  reproved,  hardeueth  his  hearty  shall  be 
utterly  destroyed,  and  that  without  remedy?  Sal- 
vation is  promised  to  the  present  season  ;  the  mercy 
and  grace  of  God  are  awarded  to  the  faithful  only 
in  improvement  of  present  privileges.  "  Now  is 
the  accepted  time,  noic  is  the  day  of  salvation."* 
"  To'daif,  if  you  will  hear  his  voioe,  harden  not 
your  hearts."! 

Those  who  neglect  the  great  business  of  salva^ 
tion  are  indeed  sehlom  totally  indifferent  to  its 
infinite  importance.  They  hope  to  enter  upon  it  in 
earnest  at  some  future  season.  At  present  it  is 
postponed ;  because  the  pressure  of  business,  and 
the  prosecution  of  their  favourite  plans  and  plea- 
sures, render  it  difficult  to  attend  to  it.  And 
have  they  then  ascertained  the  precise  period  to 
which  the  merciful  forbearance  of  God  will  ex- 
tend the  term  of  their  probation !  While  they  are 
employing  the  time  which  he  allots  them  for  the 
momentous  purpose  of  securing  their  eternal  in- 
terests, in  frivolous  or  criminal  pursuits  or  plea- 
sures, or  in  those  which  respect  only  the  present 
short  period  of  their  existence,  what  presumption 
to  cherish  the  hope  that  the  great  and  Almighty 
Being  whose  grace  and  mercy  they  are  thus  neg- 
lecting and  contemning,  will  extend  the  term  of 

*  2  Gor.  vi.  2,  .  t  Heb.  iv.  7» « 


THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE.        173 

their  probation  to  the  precise  season  (if  that  season 
is  likely  to  come)  when,  having  accomplished  all 
their  worldly  plans,  and  gratified  all  their  sensual 
desires,  they  will  begin  to  think  in  earnest  of  serv- 
ing him  to  whom  their  best  days,  their  whole  life, 
should  have  been  devoted !  Wouldst  thou,  O  man, 
thus  sport  with  a  fellow-mortal  in  whose  power 
thou  wast  placed  1  and  wilt  thou  thus  mock  the 
eternal  God  1 

Even  they  who  profess  to  be  the  servants  of  the 
Lord,  and  to  make  things  eternal  the  supreme  ob- 
jects of  their  attention,  often  postpone  to  a  more 
convenient  season  the  necessary  work  of  relin- 
quishing some  indulgence,  of  controlling  or  sub- 
duing some  passions,  of  moderating  some  worldly 
desire  or  pursuit,  which  they  are  sensible  alloy 
the  purity  of  their  virtue,  and  thus  endanger  their 
salvation.  Alas  !  my  brethren,  in  all  spiritual  mat- 
ters— (different  is  our  course  in  worldly  concerns) 
— but  in  all  spiritual  matters,  the  future  and  not 
the  present  seems  to  be  the  convenient  season. 
Thoughtless  that  we  are !  Have  we  then  secured 
ourselves  against  those  numerous  casualties,  those 
formidable  foes,  that  so  often  defeat  the  projects 
of  man,  and  bring  down  to  the  dust  his  towering 
strength  \  While  every  day  witnesses  some  of  our 
fellow-mortals  suddenly  cut  off  from  the  prosperous 
scenes  of  life  ;  while  the  spoiler  throws  his  deadly 
ehafts  among  the  companies  of  the  young,  coursing 
gayly  in  the  circle  of  pleasure — among  those  who, 
in  the  fulness  and  the  ardour  of  mature  strength, 
are  thronging  the  paths  of  worldly  aggrandizement 
and  ambition — as  well  as  among  the  ranks  of  those 
who,  tottering  under  the  infirmities  of  age,  must 
soon  let  go  their  feeble  hold  on  life;  while,  perhaps. 


174       THE  DELAYS  OF  REPENTANCE. 

from  our  very  side,  a  friend,  a  relative  is  summoned" 
to  his  dread  account — sinks  unwarned  into  the 
tomb ;  will  we  coolly  calculate  on  length  of  days  t 
will  we  postpone  to  some  future  period  a  prepara- 
tion for  that  eternity  on  whose  brink  we  are  stand- 
ing 1  How  infatuated  are  we !  to  presume  still 
longer  on  the  forbearance  of  that  God  whose  mercy 
we  are  contemning,  and  to  delay  securing  the  in- 
terests of  that  immortal  soul  which  perhaps  this 
night  his  indignant  justice  may  require  of  us! 

Yet  a  little  while,  heavenly  Father,  forbear  to 
execute  upon  us  the  just  sentence  of  thy  wrath; 
and,  in  mercy,  awaken  us  to  an  immediate  and  se- 
rious attention  to  the  things  that  belong  to  our 
eternal  peace,  ere  they  be  for  ever  hidden  from  our 
eyes — ere  we  sleep  that  last  sleep,  the  sleep  of 
death ! 


SERMON   XV. 


DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE. 


Matt.  .\xv.  10. 

r 

And  the  door  was  shut. 

The  church  at  this  holy  season  calls  with  more 
than  usual  frequency  and  solemnity  to  repentance. 
Her  faithful  members  she  exhorts  to  more  than 
customary  acts  of  humiliation  and  self-denial,  and 
to  a  particular  acknowledgment  at  the  throne  of 
God,  of  those  infirmities,  and  imperfections,  and 
sins,  from  which  the  best  in  this  probatiouary  state 
are  not  exempt :  for  "  there  is  no  man  that  liveth 
and  sinneth  not." 

She  also  feels  a  deep  solicitude  that  her  solemn 
calls  may  awaken  those  who  have  hitherto  slum- 
bered secure  in  their  iniquities ;  who,  liable  to  the 
just  wrath  of  an  offended  God.  with  fatal  indiffer- 
ence cry  to  their  conscience,  Peace!  and  though  on 
the  brink  of  the  abyss  of  perdition,  are  sporting  in 
their  sins. 

Alas  !  her  calls  are  seldom  availing :  often  they 
do  not  even  penetrate  the  hardened  heart :  and 
more  frequently  the  compunction,  the  apprehen- 
sion, the  good  resolutions  which  they  excite,  are 
dissipated  by  the  soothing  solicitations  of  present 
pleasure ;  and  sinners  delay — yes,  they  delay  the 
work  of  repentance  to  a  season  more  convenient ; 


1  76  DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE. 

like  the  foolish  virgins  in  the  parable,  they  delay, 
even  until  the  last  hour,  preparing  for  the  coming 
of  their  Lord — delay,  expecting  thai  then  they 
may  enter  into  his  kingdom.  Alas !  "  the  door  is 
shut !" 

This  delusion  is  most  dangerous ;  and  it  is  as 
common  as  it  is  dangerous.  Few  indeed  are  the 
individuals  who  are  so  hardened  in  their  sins,  and 
so  indifferent  to  their  God,  to  judgment,  to  the 
concerns  of  an  eternal  world,  as  to  dismiss  these 
awful  subjects  entirely  from  their  thought:  still 
fewer  is  the  number  of  those  who  encourage  the 
expectation,  as  impious  as  it  is  absurd,  that  with- 
out repentance  they  can  be  the  objects  of  the  favour 
of  God,  or  be  qualified  for  his  presence.  But  when 
is  this  work  of  repentance  to  be  performed  1 — to 
what  period  do  they  assign  it  ■! — to  the  last  stage  of 
life — to  the  bed  of  death  ?  Yes — a  death-bed  re- 
pentance has  been  the  dependence,  the  fatal  de- 
pendence of  thousands ;  it  has  deceived  them,  to 
their  eternal  destruction.  They  have  been  com- 
pelled, at  the  hour  of  midnight,  at  the  hour  of  death, 
when  they  should  have  been  ready  to  obey  the  sum- 
mons of  their  Lord,  to  repair  their  past  negligence; 
and  alas !  before  they  are  ready  to  enter  into  his 
kingdom,  "  the  door  is  shut !" 

Let  me  then  dissuade  you  from  trusting  to  a 
death-bed  repentance. 

A  death-bed  repentance  is  a  most  dangerous 
dependence : 

It  is  barely  possible  : 

It  is  eminently  difficult : 

It  is  most  hazardous  : 

It  is  only  in  part  effectual  as  it  respects  its  future 
reward. 


DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE.         177 

1.  A  death-bed  repentance  is  barely  possible. 

No  limits  indeed  can  be  set  to  that  mercy  of 
God  which  willeth  not  the  death  of  a  sinner,  but 
rather  that  he  should  repent  and  live ;  and  which 
prompted  God  not  to  spare  his  only  Son,  but  freely 
to  give  him  to  suffering  and  death,  to  purchase  re- 
demption for  sinners.  That  mercy  extended  par- 
don, and  peace,  and  the  joys  of  paradise,  to  the 
penitent  thief  upon  the  cross.  To  this  mercy  no 
limits  can  be  set ;  and  therefore  we  say,  a  death- 
bed repentance  is  possible. 

Whenever  the  penitent  sinner  comes  unto  that 
Saviour  whom  he  had  rejected  or  despised,  he  has 
the  assurance  that  he  shall  "  in  no  wise  be  cast 
out."*  With  the  grace  of  God,  nothing  is  impos- 
sible ;  and  by  the  power  of  this  grace,  the  bed  of 
death  mmj  become  the  scene  of  holy  contrition,  of 
strong  crying  and  tears ;  and  the  earnest  supplica- 
tion of  the  dying  penitent  my  reach  the  ears  of  the 
Lord  of  hosts,  and  call  down  his  blessing  on  this 
late,  this  momentary,  but  this  sincere  repentance. 
God  forbid,  then,  that  we  should  shut  against  the 
dying  penitent  the  arms  of  that  mercy  which  has 
constantly  been  inviting  him  to  leave  the  scenes  of 
guilty  pleasure,  and  to  repose  in  peace  on  the  fa- 
vour of  his  God.  No ;  God  is  merciful — Jesus 
Christ  is  mighty  to  save:  his  merits  are  all-suffi- 
cient— his  grace  is  almighty ;  and  if  the  moments 
of  death  be  those  of  penitence,  they  shall  be  also 
those  of  peace. 

But  this  death-bed  repentance  is  barely  possible : 
for, 

2.  Note  its  extreme  difficulty, 

*  John  vi.  37. 

Vol.  hi.  23 


ITS         DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE. 

What  is  it  which  often  deters  men  in  the  fulness^ 
of  health  and  strength  from  this  necessary  work  of 
repentance?  What  is  it  which  prompts  them  to* 
postpone  it  from  day  to  day,  from  year  to  year — ta 
postpone  it  to  the  bed  of  death  1  It  is  a  work  of 
unavoidable  difficulty,  of  pain,  of  remorse,  of  pun- 
gent sorrow,  and  therefore  men  dread  to  enter  on 
it.  Is  it  then  a  work  that  is  fit  to  be  performed  on 
the  bed  of  death  I  Is  the  hour  when  the  sinner  is 
racked  by  the  agonies  of  dissolution,  the  hour  to 
sustain  the  remorse,  the  sorrows,  the  conflicts  of 
penitence  1  Can  the  work  of  days,  of  years,  of  a 
whole  life,  be  crowded  into  one  day — perhaps  one 
short  hour,  and  that  an  hour  of  agony,  the  agony 
of  death  1 

What  are  the  constituents  of  repentance "?  It 
must  be  founded  on  a  clear  and  strong  sense  of 
the  evil  and  guilt  of  sin. 

The  penitent  must  discern  sin  in  its  most  odious- 
form,  lifting  up  the  arm  of  rebellion  against  the 
most  high  God  ;  contemning  the  justice,  violating 
the  authority,  abusing  the  goodness,  trampling  on 
the  forbearance  of  the  righteous  and  merciful 
Maker  of  the  universe :  he  must  behold  it  spread- 
ing disorder,  corruption,  and  ruin  through  that 
world  which,  when  it  rose  under  the  hand  of  the 
Almighty  Architect,  God  pronounced  to  be  good. 

The  penitent  also  must  be  deeply  impressed  with 
the  evil  and  guilt  of  sin,  in  its  effects  upon  his  own 
soul ;  defacing  that  divine  image  in  which  she  was 
formed ;  blinding  her  understanding,  perverting 
her  will,  and  corrupting  her  affections  ;  and  con- 
signing her,  in  this  world,  to  shame,  to  remorse,  to 
misery — and  in  the  world  to  come,  to  blackness  of 
darkness  for  ever. 


DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE.  179 

But  are  views  of  tlie  evil  of  sin  which  are  essen- 
tial to  true  repentance,  likely  to  possess  the  soul  on 
the  bed  of  death  I  They  are  excited  and  attained, 
under  the  influences  of  God's  Spirit,  only  by  much 
reflection,  by  serious  meditation,  by  frequent  and 
continued  prayer :  and  do  the  thousand  cares  and 
fears  which,  at  the  hour  of  her  departure,  crowd 
upon  the  soul,  and  agitate  her  with  unknown  ter- 
rors, fit  her  for  reflection,  for  meditation,  for  fre- 
quent and  continued  prayer]  Is  an  hour  of  so 
much  agony,  an  hour  in  which  she  can  form  just 
views  of  her  own  sinful  state,  and  of  the  demerit 
of  that  sin  under  which  she  labours?  On  the  verge 
of  eternity,  the  fear  of  the  wrath  to  come  princi- 
pally occupies  the  soul ;  and  this  least  ingenuous 
motive  to  repentance  is  generally,  if  not  the  sole, 
the  principal  one  that  operates  on  a  dying  peni- 
tent. The  demerit  of  sin,  as  an  infraction  of  the 
laws  and  a  contempt  of  the  authority,  justice,  good- 
ness, and  forbearance  of  God,  which  so  forcibly 
strikes  the  mind  of  the  sincere  penitent  in  the  days 
of  reflection,  meditation,  and  prayer,  seldom  more 
than  partially  occurs  amidst  the  pangs  and  appre- 
hensions of  a  dying  hour. 

Genuine  repentance  also  supposes  sincere  sor- 
row for  sin,  excited  by  a  just  sense  of  its  demerit; 
but  as  this  sense  is  generally  imperfect  in  the  dying 
penitent,  so  of  course  will  be  the  sorrow  which 
arises  from  it.  At  a  period  when  the  fear  of  that 
vengeance  which,  in  an  eternal  world,  will  be 
poured  upon  the  ungodly,  racks  the  soul,  how  dif- 
ficult will  it  be  for  her  to  acquire  an  ingenuous 
sorrow  for  sin,  prompted  by  the  views  of  its  base- 
ness and  ingratitude  towards  God,  the  greatest  and 
the  best  of  Beings  ! 


180         DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE. 

And  alas !  is  a  dying  hour  the  proper  season  to 
form  holy  resolutions,  and  to  renounce  sinful  pas- 
sions and  habits  I    Resolutions  which  require  seri- 
ous reflection,  and  the  utmost  vigour  and  decision, 
are  to  be  formed  when  the  soul  is  agitated  by  the 
terrors  and  pangs  of  death ;  and  when  the  body, 
weakened  and  depressed  by  sickness,   increases 
the  terrors  and  pangs  of  the  soul.   Passions  which, 
from  long  indidgence,  have  become  the  masters  of 
the  soul ;  and  sinful  habits  which,  long  cherished, 
hold  her  in  servitude — are  to  be  renounced,  to  be 
relinquished.    This  work,  a  work  of  years,  (alas! 
sincere  Christian,  dost  thou  not  find  it  a  work  of 
years  1)  is  to  be  done  in  a  day — in  an  hour !    This 
work,  to  which  the  soul  should  bring  the  most  de- 
liberate resolution  and  determined  courage,  is  to 
be  performed  when  she  is  weakened,  distracted  by 
the  cares,  the  languishing,  the   fears  of  a  dying 
hour !     O  God  !  but  for  thy  superabundant  and  al- 
mighty grace,  the  resolutions  of  the  dying  sinner 
would  be  ineffectual,   and  his  cries  only  those  of 
despair!     And  the  uncertainty  whether  this  grace 
will  be  afforded,  renders  a  death-bed  repentance 
hazardous. 

S.  A  death-bed  repentance  is  most  hazardous. 

Its  hazard  arises  in  great  part  from  its  difficulty; 
which  I  have  already  illustrated.  The  difficulty  of 
a  work  which  requires  the  vigorous  exercise  of  the 
powers  of  the  mind  in  their  full  strength,  must  be 
greatly  increased  when  those  powers  are  enfeebled 
by  sickness,  and  by  the  near  approach  of  death. 
Hence  there  is  great  hazard  that  this  work  of  re- 
pentance will  not  be  performed  on  a  death-bed. 
There  must  at  this  period  be  extraordinary  supplies 


DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE.  181 

of  divine  grace,  to  make  up  for  the  weakness  of 
nature,  and  to  enable  the  sinner  to  perform,  in  a 
short  period  of  perplexity  and  anguish,  the  de- 
liberate work  of  years.  But  what  certainty  is 
there  that  this  extraordinary  supply  of  grace  will 
be  granted  1  Can  the  expectation  be  founded  on  the 
promise  of  God  1  No  such  promise  is  given.  Mercy 
indeed  is  assured  to  all  who  repent,  at  whatsoever 
period  their  repentance  takes  place ;  but  extraor- 
dinary grace  is  no  where  promised  to  those  who, 
in  the  season  of  health  and  strength,  despise  the 
warnings  and  resist  the  strivings  of  God's  Spirit. 
On  the  contrary,  as  if  to  destroy  this  expectation, 
the  succours  of  God's  Spirit  are  promised  only  to 
4;he  time  present.  "  To-day,  if  ye  will  hear  his 
voice."*  "  Seek  ye  the  Lord  while  he  may  be 
found,  call  ye  upon  him  while  he  is  near."f  "  In 
the  day  of  thy  visitation  attend  to  the  things  that 
belong  to  thy  peace,  before  they  are  for  ever  hidden 
from  thine  eyes."t  There  can  be  no  expectation, 
therefore,  founded  on  the  promise  of  God,  that  ex- 
traordinary measures  of  grace  will  be  afforded,  to 
quicken  and  strengthen  the  repentance  of  a  death- 
bed. There  are  indeed  many  considerations  which 
indicate  the  unreasonableness  and  presumption  of 
such  an  expectation.  The  sinner  has  devoted  the 
whole  of  his  life,  and  the  vigour  of  his  days,  to 
selfish  or  sensual  indulgence,  and  when  his  passions 
can  be  no  longer  gratified,  and  death  and  judgment 
are  overtaking  him,  he  cries  to  God  for  succour. 
When  the  past  course  of  his  life  has  thus  been 
devoted  to  sin  and  to  the  world,  can  there  be  any 
reasonable  expectation  that  his  cries  will  be  heard 

*  Hebe  IV,  7.  t  Isa.  Iv.  6.  |  Luke  xix.  43. 


ii82  liEATH-BED  REPENTANCE. 

— that  God  will  accept  the  refuse  of  his  days,  and 
make  that  penitence  sincere  and  evangelical,  which 
the  fear  of  future  wrath  only  has  excited  1  Miracles 
of  grace  God  indeed  can  perform ;  extraordinary 
supplies  of  his  Holy  Spirit  we  trust  he  does  some- 
times afford,  to  cheer  the  desponding  soul,  and  to 
strengthen  the  pious  desires  and  resolutions  of  the 
dying  penitent;  but  no  one  can  reasonably  cal- 
culate on  receiving  this  extraordinary  grace.  When 
the  invitations  of  his  heavenly  Father  have  been 
slighted ;  when  the  calls  of  the  Holy  Spirit  have 
been  rejected ;   when  its  secret   inspirations  and 
monitions   have   been   unheeded    and   despised — 
What!  shall  all  this  constitute  a  claim  for  extra- 
ordinary supplies  of  grace — for  singular  exertions 
of  God's  mercy  1    Presumptuous  expectation  !   Sin- 
ner, let  it  not  deceive  you.     If  you  delay  your 
repentance  to  the  hour  of  sickness  and  death,  its 
difficulty  will  be  eminently  increased ;  more  than 
ordinary  grace  will  be  necessary  for  you ;  you  can 
indulge  no  solid  expectation  that  3^ou  will  receive 
it.     How  hazardous,  then,  to  trust  to  a  death-bed 
repentance ! 

It  is  hazardous  also,  for  there  is  every  reason  to 
distrust  its  sincerity. 

Cause  indeed  is  there  for  distrusting  the  sincerity 
of  the  repentance  which  is  excited  in  the  near  ap- 
proach of  that  eternity  where  everlasting  vengeance 
will  be  executed  on  the  wicked — which  is  excited 
by  the  fear  of  death,  that  will  translate  the  soul  into 
this  eternal  state.  Cause  there  is  for  distrusting 
the  sincerity  of  those  resolutions  of  amendment  of 
life,  which  are  formed  as  a  relief  from  the  agonies 
of  conscience,  and  when  the  world  has  no  longer 
any  charms,   and  temptation  no   longer  solicits. 


I>EATH-BED  REPENTANCE.  185 

The  fear  of  punishment  alone  never  excites  genu- 
ine repentance.  This  evangelical  grace  must  be 
founded  on  a  lively  apprehension  of  the  baseness 
and  ingratitude  which  sin  displays,  as  a  violation 
of  the  authority  and  laws  of  the  greatest  and  best 
of  Beings,  God  most  holy,  most  just,  and  most 
good.  But  in  a  death-bed  repentance,  the  fear 
of  future  wrath  will  generally  predominate,  and 
extinguish  those  ingenuous  feelings  which  excite 
godly  sorrow. 

Nor  can  there  be  any  certainty  that  those  reso- 
lutions of  penitence,  formed  amidst  the  terrors  of 
conscience  and  thp.  fpars  of  dftath,  and  in  the  ab- 
sence of  all  temptation,  would  not  be  forgotten  or 
broken,  should  those  terrors  and  fears  be  removed, 
and  should  temptation  again  assail  the  soul.  The 
best,  the  only  evidence  of  the  sincerity  of  penitent 
resolutions,  is  found  in  the  performance  of  them. 
The  only  test  of  genuine  repentance  is  in  amend- 
ment of  life.  Alas!  there  can  be  no  such  evidence, 
no  such  test,  in  a  death-bed  repentance.  Sorrow 
for  sin  often  proves  as  transient  as  the  affliction 
or  fears  which  excited  it.  Resolutions  of  amend- 
ment, formed  in  the  dark  and  disconsolate  hour  of 
adversity,  often  vanish,  like  the  morning  cloud  and 
the  early  dew,  before  the  first  beams  of  prosperity. 
What  certainty  can  there  be  that  such  would  not 
prove  the  repentance  and  resolutions  of  the  death- 
bed penitent,  were  his  life  prolonged  X  He  leaves 
the  world,  affording  to  others  no  certain  evidence 
that  his  penitence  is  genuine,  enjoying  no  comfort- 
able assurance  of  it  himself — unless  it  pleases  God 
to  grant  him  the  rare  and  extraordinary  manifesta- 
tions of  divine  love.  How  hazardous  is  a  death- 
bed repentance ! 


184         DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE. 

4.  Lastly.  It  is  only  in  part  effectual,  as  it  re- 
spects its  future  reward. 

When  all  the  difficulties  of  a  death-bed  repent- 
ance are  overcome — when,  notwithstanding  the 
weakness  of  nature  in  her  last  moments  of  pain 
and  agony,  the  penitent  sinner,  through  divine 
grace,  feels  that  godly  sorrow  which  is  a  charac- 
teristic of  genuine  repentance,  and  forms  true  and 
steadfast  resolutions  of  obedience — when  the  sin- 
cerity of  his  repentance  is  thus  placed  beyond  all 
hazard,  and  he  rejoices  in  a  well-founded  hope  of 
the  mercy  of  God — even  then,  a  death-bed  repent- 
ance, as  it  respects  its  futuro  i-owards,  is  only  in 
part  effectual.  It  is  founded  in  the  nature  of  things, 
it  is  founded  in  reason  and  justice,  that  there  should 
be  a  proportion  between  the  work  and  the  reward : 
to  suppose,  then,  that  the  sinner,  whose  life  has 
been  devoted  to  fulfilling  the  lusts  of  the  flesh — 
who,  so  far  from  doing  good  in  his  day  and  gene- 
ration, hath,  by  his  injustice,  his  cruelty,  his  sen- 
suality, disturbed  the  peace  of  society,  invaded  the 
rights  of  others,  and  corrupted,  by  his  evil  example 
and  solicitations,  the  souls  of  men — who,  so  far 
from  glorifying  his  God  and  Saviour  by  an  holy 
life,  hath  practically  denied  him,  contemned  his 
authority,  violated  his  laws,  done  despite  unto  his 
Spirit,  and  trampled  under  foot  his  precious  blood  ; 
to  suppose  that  the  last  moments  of  a  life  thus  sin- 
ful, spent  in  the  tears,  the  cries,  and  the  resolves 
of  penitence,  will  obtain  the  same  weight  of  glory 
which  will  reward  the  uniform  service  of  the  prime 
and  vigour  of  our  years,  is  contrary  to  every  idea 
of  propriety  and  justice.  No;  God,  the  just  Judge, 
who  rewardeth  every  man  according  as  his  work 
shall  be,  will  apportioa  the  reward  to  the  work 


©EATH-BED  REPENTANCE.         185 

performed.  The  ability  by  which  this  work  is  per- 
formed cometh  of  God :  its  acceptance  must  be 
attributed  to  that  mercy  which  is  not  strict  to  mark 
what  is  done  amiss ;  and  its  reward,  far  transcend- 
ing the  merits  of  the  best  human  performances, 
proceeds  from  that  infinite  goodness  which  delights 
in  the  diffusion  of  happiness.  Of  grace,  therefore, 
is  our  salvation  ;  and  "  not  of  works,  lest  any  man 
should  boast."*  But  there  is  still  a  proportion  be- 
tween the  rewards  of  heaven  and  the  comparative 
advances  in  holiness  of  the  children  of  God.  As  it 
respects,  indeed,  God's  kingdom  in  this  world,  our 
Saviour  pronounced  the  parable  of  the  householder 
calling  his  servants  at  different  hours  into  the  vine- 
yard, and  finally  rewarding  them  all  alike.  But  this 
parable  was  designed  to  repress  the  arrogance  of 
the  Jews,  who  would  have  excluded  the  Gentiles 
from  an  equal  participation  with  them  of  the  bless- 
ings of  this  kingdom.  Early  called  into  the  vine- 
yard, the  Jews  murmured  against  their  Lord,  be- 
cause, though  he  fulfilled  his  covenant  with  them, 
he  admitted,  at  the  Inst  hour,  the  Gentiles  to  an 
equal  interest  with  them  in  Gospel  privileges. 
"  Thou  hast  made  them  equal  unto  us,  who  have 
borne  the  burden  and  heat  of  the  day."f  And  here 
the  Sovereign  Dispenser  of  grace  vindicates  his 
right  to  distinguish,  according  to  his  own  will  and 
pleasure,  various  portions  of  mankind  with  different 
degrees  of  spiritual  light  and  knowledge.  "  May  I 
not  (Jo  what  I  will  with  mine  own  f '|  Still,  in  the 
final  awards  of  his  justice,  they  who,  equally  dis- 
tinguished on  earth  by  spiritual  privileges,  have 
variously  improved  them,  will  be  variously  reward- 

*  Eph.  ii,  9.  f  Matt.  XX.  1^.  |  Matt.  xx.  l§. 

Vgt.  Ill,  24 


18()  liEATII-EED  REPENTANCE, 

eel.  For  in  the  celestial  house  where  the  righteous 
dwell  for  ever,  are  many  mansions ;  and  in  that 
new  heaven,  the  habitation  of  the  saints,  one  star 
differeth  from  another  star  in  glory.  How  far  in- 
ferior, then,  will  be  the  future  glory  of  the  death- 
bed penitent,  who  has  only  to  offer  the  tears  of 
contrition,  the  supplications  of  a  wounded  spirit, 
and  the  desires  of  a  soul  which  pants  for  mercy — 
to  that  bliss  which  will  be  awarded  to  him  who 
early  forsook  the  ranks  of  the  ungodly,  and  enlisted 
under  the  banner  of  his  God  and  Saviour ;  who 
early  took  up  his  cross,  to  follow  his  divine  Lord 
and  Master ;  who  early  commenced  that  good  fight, 
which  terminated  in  complete  victory  over  a  sinful 
world,  in  the  full  attainment  of  grace  and  holiness  ; 
and  for  which,  therefore,  there  is  laid  up  the  most 
splendid  crown  of  glory  ! 

Persevere,  then,  young  Christian,  with  increasing 
fidelity  and  ardour,  in  thy  warfare ;  for  thou  shalt 
increase  thy  future  reward.  Redouble  thy  dili- 
gence, aged  saint ;  for  the  term  of  thy  probation  is 
nearly  closed.  Renounce  without  delay,  O  sinner ! 
thy  sinful  course ;  for  every  moment's  delay  dimi- 
nishes that  bliss  which,  by  patient  continuance  in 
well-doing,  thou  rnayest  secure  :  and  a  few  days  or 
hours,  at  the  close  of  life,  devoted  to  God,  can  at 
best  obtain  for  thee  but  a  distant  view  of  that  glory 
which,  in  its  full  radiance,  fills  with  unutterable 
ecstasy  the  spirits  of  the  blest. 

Alas !  that  any  should  rest  their  immortal  in- 
terests on  a  death-bed  repentance.  We  do  not 
declare  this  repentance  impossible ;  on  the  con- 
trary, we  declare  it  is  possible,  through  the  extra- 
ordinary mercy  and  grace  of  God ;  and  therefore 
we  encourage  and  soothe  the  contrition  and  sorrow 


DEATH-BED  REPENTANCE.  187 

<of  the  dying  penitent.  But  still  a  death-bed  repent- 
ance is  inexpressibly  difficult — eminently  hazardous 
— and  recompensed,  at  best,  with  only  imperfect  re- 
wards. Will  any,  then,  rest  their  eternal  happiness 
on  a  death-bed  repentance  ?  That  repentance  may 
never  come :  some  sudden  accident  may  in  a  mo- 
ment cut  asunder  the  tie  that  unites  you  to  life; 
disease  may  instantly  terminate  your  mortal  ex- 
istence ;  delirium,  seizing  your  departing  spirit, 
may  render  you  incapable  of  roflection,  of  resolu- 
tion— even  of  one  prayer  for  mercy.  Oh !  fatal 
delusion!  that  has  placed  the  interests  of  eternity 
on  a  death-bed  repentance — which  never  comes. 

Beloved  brethren,  oh !  defer  not  to  this  uncer- 
tain, this  hazardous  hour — this  hour  of  solicitude, 
of  weakness,  of  pain,  of  agony — the  work  of  re- 
pentance. Employ  the  season  of  health,  of  strength, 
of  vigour,  in  this  difficult,  this  arduous,  but  this  in- 
dispensable work.  Let  your  death-bed  be  the  scene, 
not  of  your  tears,  your  anguish,  your  conflicts;  but 
of  your  praises,  your  joys,  your  triumphs.  Then 
have  recourse  to  your  God — not  as  your  Judge,  to 
be  appeased — but  as  your  Father  already  recon- 
ciled. Then  have  recourse  to  your  Saviour,  not 
solely  to  shelter  you  from  the  tempest  of  the  divine 
displeasure,  but  to  support  and  conduct  you  through 
the  darkness  and  trials  of  this  dread  hour,  to  the 
light  and  glories  of  eternity. 

Oh,  brethren !  delay  not  until  the  last  moment ; 
sue  for  mercy,  lest  the  door  be  shut. 


SERMON   XVI. 


THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT. 


Luke  xviii.  13. 
God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner. 

The  language  of  the  publican  is  the  language 
which  the  church  daily  puts  into  the  mouths  of  her 
members  during  this  season  devoted  to  extraor- 
dinary exercises  of  humiliation  and  penitence.  Not 
that  she  consiflers  repentance  as  only  an  occasional 
duty,  to  be  discharged  only  at  a  particular  period  : 
it  is  a  duty  of  constant  obligation — the  paramount 
business  of  life.  To  confess,  and  to  forsake  our 
iniquities,  are  duties,  from  which,  at  no  period,  we 
shall  be  exempt,  until  the  body  of  sin  being  de- 
stroyed, we  shall  shine  for  ever  in  the  garments  of 
holiness,  as  the  angels  of  God. 

But  what  is  thus  at  all  times  obligatory  upon  us, 
the  church  enjoins  more  particularly  at  certain  sea- 
sons. The  various  graces  and  duties  of  religion 
should  be  exhibited  in  our  uniform  character,  and 
in  the  daily  tenour  of  our  lives.  But  their  vigour 
would  abate,  and  they  would  be  in  danger  of  total 
decay,  did  we  not,  at  certain  periods,  by  more  than 
ordinary  attention,  brighten  their  lustre  and  infuse 
into  them  new  strength. 

The  emotions  and  tlie  holy  resolutions  of  repent- 
ance demand,  therefore,  at  stated  periods,  an  ex- 
traordinary portion  of  our  thoughts  and  of  our 


THE  PETITION  OP  THE  PENITENT.*  189 

time.  The  season  which  immediately  precedes 
the  commemoration  of  the  death  of  Christ  as  an 
atonement  for  sin,  is  most  judiciously  devoted,  by 
our  church,  to  extraordinary  acts  of  humiliation 
and  penitence.  Directing  our  view  to  those  sins 
which  were  the  cause  of  those  bitter  suiTerings  and 
death  of  the  Son  of  God,  as  the  representative  of  our 
guilt,  to  the  commemoration  of  which  the  present 
season  is  designed  as  a  preparation,  she  enjoins 
on  her  ministers  to  weep,  as  it  were,  between  the 
porch  and  the  altar,  and  to  say — "  Spare  thy  people, 
good  Lord,  spare  them,  and  let  not  thine  heritage 
be  brought  to  confusion."  Calling  on  her  members 
humbly  and  faithfully  to  review  the  sins  which  may 
have  corrupted  their  souls,  and  involving  them  in 
guilt,  insulted  the  majesty  of  their  Almighty  Sove- 
reign and  Judge,  and  exposed  them  to  his  just  dis- 
pleasure— she  warns  and  entreats  them  to  turn  unto 
the  Lord  with  all  their  hearts,  and  with  fasting,  and 
with  weeping,  and  with  mourning ;  and  with  deep 
and  lively  penitence  to  ofter  the  humble  prayer  of 
the  publican — "  God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner." 

This  should  be  the  language  of  contrition. 

It  should  be  the  language  of  faith. 

It  should  be  the  language  of  holy  resolution. 

Penetrated  with  contrition  for  his  offences,  the 
penitent  should  implore  mercy. 

He  must  believe  that  God  is  merciful,  or  it  would 
be  in  vain  to  utter  th©  petition. 

And  he  should  form  resolutions  of  a  new  and 
holy  life,  or  his  contrition  would  be  feigned,  and 
his  faith  presumptuous. 

Thus,  then,  the  state  of  penitence  is  a  state  of 
contrition^  o^  faith,  of  holy  resolution. 

"God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner!"  is  the  Ian 


190  THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT. 

guage  of  every  sincere  penitent ;  and  it  should  be 
the  language  of  contrition — contrition  for  having 
offended  his  God — for  having  contemned  the  mercy 
of  his  Saviour — for  having  corrupted  his  own  soul 
— for  having  contributed  to  corrupt  the  souls  of 
others. 

Contrition  for  having  offended  his  God — who, 
infinitely  holy  and  infinitely  good,  demanded  his 
adoration — who,  infinitely  just  and  infinitely  power- 
ful, claims  his  deepest  reverence — who,  the  only 
source  of  perfection  and  felicity,  is  worthy  of  the 
liveliest  homage  of  all  intelligent  creatures — the 
Almighty  Being  who  made  him  ;  on  whom  he  is 
dependent;  who  constantly  preserves  him,  and  be- 
stows on  him  all  his  enjoyments ;  and  to  whom  he 
is  to  render  an  account.  This  God— to  whom  he 
is  bound  by  the  strongest  and  the  closest  ties  of 
duty,  of  love,  of  gratitude,  and  of  everlasting  in- 
terest— he  has  offended,  by  transgressing  laws,  in 
themselves  most  reasonable ;  in  their  consequences 
most  beneficial ;  producing  purity,  peace,  unspeak- 
able consolation — laws,  to  enable  him  to  obdy 
which,  the  necessary  strength  was  afforded,  and 
which  are  enforced  by  the  highest  sanctions — hap- 
piness without  end ;  misery  eternal.  And  he  has 
transgressed  not  only  occasionally,  not  only  by 
surprise,  not  only  when  assailed  by  powerful  temp- 
tation, but  deliberately,  and  perhaps  in  some  cases 
habitually.  Ah,  brethren !  who  is  there  that  has 
not  sinned — that  has  not  done  the  things  which  he 
ought  not  to  have  done,  and  left  undone  the  things 
which  he  ought  to  have  done  1.  And  yet  the  cares 
of  the  world,  its  business  and  its  pleasures,  so  oc- 
cupy men,  that  there  are  few  who  reflect  that  this 
is  their  sinful  condition — ^that  there  is  a  God  whom 


THE  PETITION  OP  THE  PENITENT.  T91 

they  are  bound  to  serve,  that  there  is  a  God  whom 
they  have  offended,  and  who  will  judge  them. 

But  when  the  hour  of  reflection  arrives — whea 
some  dispensation  of  Providence,  some  powerful 
call  of  God's  Spirit,  arouses  the  sinner ;  should  he 
yield  to  the  warning,  and  seriously  meditate  on  his 
sinful  condition,  the  dangerous  ease  of  impenitence 
will  be  succeeded  by  the  lively  emotions  of  contri- 
tion. He  will,  in  bitterness  of  spirit,  acknowledge 
that  he  has  violated  the  laws  of  his  God,  laws  rea- 
sonable and  good ;  that  he  has  sinned  against  the 
Author  of  his  being,  the  Preserver  and  Benefactor 
of  his  life,  the  merciful  Redeemer  of  his  soul ;  and 
that,  in  thus  offending  the  greatest  and  best  of 
Beings,  he  has  disregarded  the  strongest  dictates 
of  duty,  of  gratitude,  and  of  interest — "  God  be 
merciful  to  me  a  sinner." 

But  the  penitent  beholds  still  further  aggrava- 
tions of  his  guil.t :  he  has  neglected  the  mercy  of 
his  Saviour. 

In  his  state  of  careless  impenitence,  this  con- 
sideration would  not  have  affected  him.  Perhaps^ 
indeed,  he  had  never  doubted  the  divine  mission  of 
Jesus  Christ,  and  always  acknowledged  his  spot- 
less character,  and  the  benevolent  object  for  which 
he  came  into  the  world.  But  as  to  the  deep  con- 
cern which  he  had  in  the  great  salvation  proclaimed 
by  Jesus  Christ;  as  to  the  necessity  of  his  securing 
an  interest  in  the  merits  of  this  Saviour,  in  order  to 
avert  the  just  displeasure  of  the  Almighty  Being 
whom  he  had  offended ;  as  to  the  divine  and  ex- 
alted offices  of  Christ,  as  his  Instructor,  his  Inter- 
cessor and  Saviour,  and  his  Almighty  King,  so 
powerfully  demanding  homage,  gratitude,  and  love 
—on  these  points  the  impenitent  sinner  has  been 


192  THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT. 

wholly  insensible.  Alas!  he  has  daily  renewed 
those  offences  which  rendered  it  necessary  that 
the  Son  of  God  should  suffer ;  thus  crucifying  him 
afresh,  and  putting  him  to  an  open  shame.  The 
invitations  of  this  jSaviour,  proclaimed  by  the  word, 
the  ministry,  and  the  ordinances  of  the  church,  he 
has  daily  heard,  but  he  has  daily  neglected  them. 
No  real,  no  permanent  sentiments  of  gratitude  for 
that  infinite  love  which  purchased  the  favour  of 
God  and  the  glories  of  heaven  for  him  who  was 
the  servant  of  sin  and  the  heir  of  perdition,  have 
been  cherished  in  his  bosom.  Swayed  only  by  his 
sinful  passions,  and  occupied  solely  by  his  sensual 
pursuits,  he  is  insensible  to  the  guilt  which  he  in- 
curs, in  neglecting  and  despising  the  riches  of 
God's  mercy  in  Jesus  Christ. 

But  when  he  is  awakened  from  this  criminal  in- 
sensibility, and  is  convinced  of  his  lost  and  danger- 
ous condition  as  a  sinner,  his  contrition  is  height- 
ened by  the  reflection  that  he  has  so  long  neglected 
the  Saviour  whose  love  has  been  so  long  exercised 
upon  him,  and  he  has  despised  it ;  who,  by  his 
agony  and  bloody  sweat,  by  his  cross  and  passion, 
besought  him  to  turn  from  his  sins ;  but  he  con- 
tinued in  them,  trampling  under  foot  the  Son  of 
God,  counting  the  blood  of  the  covenant  an  unholy 
thinfif — "  God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner." 

But  the  awakened  penitent  perceives  that  he  has 
,  also  corrupted  his  own  soul. 

Formed  to  contemplate  and  to  imitate  the  divine 
perfections,  and  to  obey  those  laws  which  are  the 
transcript  of  divine  holiness  snd  purity,  the  soul 
cannot  violate  this  law  of  her  nature  without  being 
disgraced  and  corrupted.  Every  violation  of  the 
love,  the  duty,  the  gratitude  which  man  owes  to 


THE  PETITION  OP  THE  PENITENT.  193 

the  holy  and  gracious  Author  of  his  being,  corrupts 
the  heart,  weakens  its  sensibility  to  goodness,  and 
at  length  confirms  it  in  the  service,  in  the  habits, 
and  in  the  love  of  sin.  Every  violation  of  the  vir- 
tues required  by  the  relations  of  life  or  the  ties  of 
society,  weakens  some  amiable  sentiment  of  our 
nature,  strengthens  some  criminal  or  unworthy 
passion,  and  finally  extinguishing  in  cold  selfish- 
ness every  benevolent  affection,  tits  man  to  be  the 
scourge  and  the  curse  of  his  fellow-man.  Every 
departure  from  those  laws  of  self-government — of 
temperance,  of  purity,  of  contentment— which  rea- 
son and  the  command  of  God  impose,  disorders 
the  soul,  and  finally  enslaves  her  to  those  passions 
which  degrade  the  high  nature  of  man  to  a  level 
with  the  brute  creation.  Thus  corrupting  is  sin, 
transforming  the  soul,  created  in  the  image  of  God, 
into  the  image  of  the  fallen  angel  whom  God  has 
cursed ;  making  the  soul,  instead  of  the  abode  of 
purity  and  peace,  like  "  the  troubled  sea  which 
cannot  rest,  whose  waters  cast  up  mire  and  dirt."* 
While  the  sinner,  deluded  by  the  phantoms  of  false 
pleasure,  and  ruled  only  by  his  passions,  eagerly 
followed  the  path  of  sensual  indulgence,  he  had 
neither  the  leisure  nor  the  inclination  to  contem- 
plate the  odious  nature  of  sin.  But  when,  yielding 
to  some  merciful  call  of  God's  providence,  and  to 
the  awakening  and  enlightening  influences  of  his 
Holy  Spirit,  he  is  led  to  sober  reflection,  he  strips 
sin  of  the  false  charms  with  which  his  imagination 
and  his  passions  had  decked  her :  he  contemplates 
her  in  the  light  of  reason,  of  conscience,  and  of  the 
word  of  God  ;  and  he  is  overwhelmed  with  shame 

*  Isa.  Ivii.  20. 
Vol.  III.  25 


i94  THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT. 

and  confusion  for  having  cherished  an  object  so 
corrupting,  so  dishonourable  and  base.  Not  only 
have  I  offended  and  contemned  my  God  and  Sa- 
viour, (is  his  sorrowing  language,)  by  ray  iniquities, 
but  I  have  deeply  corrupted,  by  them,  my  own  soul, 
and  have  rendered  her  tributary  to  passions  dis- 
graceful and  degrading.  Miserable  man !  I  have 
rendered  my  immortal  spirit,  destined  to  live  for 
€ver  in  the  presence  of  God,  fit  only  to  dwell  with 
the  devil  and  his  angels — "  God  be  merciful  to  me 
a  sinner." 

But  the  aggravations  of  his  guilt  rest  not  here. 
He  has  contributed  to  corrupt  the  souls  of  others. 
How  many  have  his  solicitations  or  his  counsel 
allured  from  the  paths  of  virtue  !  How  many,  who 
had  just  entered  on  the  ways  of  iniquity,  has  he 
confirmed  in  the  course  that  leadeth  to  destruction ! 
The  early  glow  of  piety  has  been  chilled  by  his 
sneers.  The  resolutions  of  more  mature  virtue 
have  been  checked  by  his  ridicule  or  persecution. 
The  timid  he  has  discouraged,  the  feeble  he  has 
ensnared,  and  even  the  strong  in  virtue  have  not 
been  unmoved  by  his  assaults. 

But,  admitting  that  he  has  not  been  thus  en- 
gaged in  the  impious  work  of  making  proselytes 
to  wickedness,  how  pernicious  has  been  that  in^u- 
ence  of  his  example,  which  must  have  been  in- 
creased with  the  elevation  of  his  talents,  his  cha- 
racter, or  his  station  !  In  this  view,  the  corrupting 
effects  of  sin  are  incalculable.  The  vicious  example 
of  one  individual  extends  to  thousands,  each  of 
whom  becomes  a  centre,  from  which  corruption 
spreads  in  every  direction,  multiplying  its  victims 
without  number,  and  without  end. 

When  the  sinner,  then,  is  awakened  to  reflec- 


THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT.  195 

tion,  how  heavy  does  the  guilt  of  having  corrupted 
others  rest  upon  his  soul !  How  many  have  been 
induced  to  blaspheme  their  God,  to  neglect  his 
ordinances  and  worship,  to  violate  his  laws,  to  in- 
dulge in  sensuality  and  sin,  through  his  solicitation, 
or  through  his  example  !  He  sees  that  he  has  not 
only  corrupted  his  own  soul,  but  the  souls  of  others ; 
and  the  burden  of  their  iniquities  lies  heavy  upon 
his  conscience — "  God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner." 

These  are  the  views  which  excite  and  heighten 
the  contrition  of  the  penitent :  he  has  offended  his 
God — he  has  neglected  and  contemned  his  Saviour 
— he  has  corrupted  his  own  soul — he  has  contri- 
buted to  corrupt  the  souls  of  others.  Under  the- 
penetrating  conviction  of  guilt,  his  awakened  con- 
science would  lead  him  to  despair,  were  not  his 
contrition  enlivened  by  views  of  the  mercy  of  God 
in  Jesus  Christ.  So  that  the  language  of  contrition 
is  also  the  language  of  faith. 

Between  the  evangelical  graces  there  is  an  in- 
separable connexion  ;  and  the  state  of  penitence 
implies  not  only  the  exercise  of  sorrow  for  sin,  but 
of  faith  in  God's  mercy  through  Jesus  Christ  for 
the  pardon  of  it.  Repentance  would  be  hopeless, 
if  there  were  no  mode  revealed,  by  which  tho 
righteous  Governor  of  the  universe  could,  consist- 
ently with  his  holiness,  his  justice,  and  his  divine 
authority,  extend  mercy  to  the  sinner.  But  in  every 
exercise  of  contrition  the  truth  is  present,  to  cheer 
and  to  comfort  us,  that  God  is  in  Christ  reconciling 
the  world  unto  himself,  not  imputing  unto  them 
their  trespasses  and  sins.  The  view  of  God's 
mercy  to  sinners,  through  his  only-begotten  and 
well-beloved  Son,  while  it  increases  the  pungency 
of  remorse  for  haAunff  offended  that  ijracious  Sove- 


196  THE  PETITIOIN  OF  THE  PEMTExM. 

reign  who  withheld  not,  as  the  price  of  our  redemp- 
tion, his  only  Son,  presents  also  the  only  unfailing 
source  of  consolation.  God's  holiness  accuses  even 
the  angels  with  folly:  his  justice  demands  the  ex- 
ecution of  the  sentence — "  The  soul  that  sinneth, 
it  shall  die."*  Reason  and  nature  proclaim  that 
God's  holiness  and  justice,  must  be  preserved,  and 
demand  complete  propitiation  for  man's  transgres- 
sion— a  substitute,  to  endure,  in  man's  stead,  the 
penalty  against  sin,  (the  entire  remission  of  which 
would  be  incompatible  with  the  veracity,  the  autho- 
rity, the  justice,  and  the  holiness  of  God.)  The 
most  perfect  creature  on  earth,  the  most  perfect 
creature  in  heaven,  cannot  render  this  propitiation, 
or  present  this  substitute  :  for  the  most  perfect 
creature,  in  the  highest  acts  of  obedience,  only 
fulfils  the  law  of  his  nature,  and  can  have  no  super- 
fluous righteousness  with  which  to  atone  for  the 
sins  of  others.  It  is  then  a  dictate  of  reason,  as 
well  as  a  declaration  of  the  word  of  God,  that  there 
is  salvation  in  no  other  but  in  that  only-begotten 
and  well-beloved  Son  of  the  Father,  who  has  made 
a  full,  free,  and  suflicient  oblation  and  satisfaction 
for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world.  Resting  with  full 
faith  in  the  gracious  assurance,  that  whosoever 
Cometh  unto  God  through  this  Saviour,  he  will  in 
no  wise  cast  out,  the  penitent,  animated,  and 
cheered,  and  comforted  by  the  hope  of  forgive- 
ness, can  utter  the  prayer — "  God  be  merciful  to 
me  a  sinner." 

But  this  is  not  only  the  language  of  faith,  but  of 
lioly  resolution. 

Here  also  the  connexion  between  the  evangelical 
graces  is  abundantly  evident.   To  suppose  that  gin- 

*  Ezek.  xviii.  4. 


THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT.  197 

oere  sorrow  for  sin  is  compatible  with  a  disposition 
and  resolution  to  cherish  it,  is  in  the  highest  de- 
gree absurd;  and  equally  so,  to  suppose  that  ge- 
nuine and  lively  faith  in  the  merits  of  Him  who 
came  to  redeem  us  from  all  iniquity,  will  admit  of 
the  indulgence  of  it.  The  state  of  penitence,  there- 
fore, is  a  state  of  holy  resolution.  The  penitent 
must  aim  at  renouncing  all  those  sinful  passions 
and  pursuits  by  which  he  has  offended  his  God, 
contemned  his  Saviour,  corrupted  his  own  soul, 
and  contributed  to  corrupt  the  souls  of  others.  In 
every  form,  however  alluring — under  every  guise, 
however  seducing — sin  must  be  his  abhorrence ; 
and  so  strong  must  be  his  aversion  to  it,  that  he 
must  resolve  to  avoid  even  the  appearance  of  evil. 
Renewed  in  the  spirit  of  his  mind,  sanctified  in 
soul  and  body,  his  life  must  exhibit,  in  bright 
lustre,  "  whatsoever  things  are  pure,  whatsoever 
things  are  honest,  whatsoever  things  are  lovely 
and  of  good  report."*  To  excite  and  enable  him 
thus  to  advance  in  piety,  in  holiness,  and  in  virtue, 
he  enjoys  the  most  powerful  aids,  even  the  influ- 
ences of  God's  Spirit — and  the  most  interesting 
motives,  even  the  hope  of  eternal  rewards,  and  the 
fear  of  everlasting  punishment.  .  Thus  aided,  and 
thus  animated,  he  resolves  to  turn  from  his  evil 
ways,  and  to  love  and  serve  the  Author  of  his  be- 
ing, and  the  Redeemer  of  his  soul.  He  resolves 
that  the  time  past  of  his  life  shall  suffice  to  have 
wrought  the  will  of  the  flesh,  and  henceforth  he 
will  serve  the  living  God  :  the  time  past  of  his  life 
shall  suffice  to  have  walked  in  darkness — hence- 
forth he  will  walk  in  the  light  of  truth.  No  longer 
will  he  live  to  the  flesh,  to  fulfil  the  lusts  thereof; 

*  PhU.  iv.  6. 


198  THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT. 

but  to  Him  who  died  to  redeem  him  from  divine 
justice,  and  who  rose  again  to  exalt  him  to  the 
o-lories  of  heaven.  With  these  holy  resolutions 
is  the  prayer  of  contrition  and  of  faith  uttered — 
"  God  be  merciful  to  me  a  sinner." 

Brethren,  it  is  the  declaration  of  Him  whose 
truth  is  as  unchanging  as  his  power  is  resistless, 
that  except  we  repent,  we  shall  all  perish.  Let  us 
then  humble  ourselves  in  sincere  and  deep  contri- 
tion, and  let  our  hopes  of  pardon  be  placed  only 
on  the  mercy  of  God,  promised  to  mankind  in 
Christ  Jesus  our  Lord.  Let  it  be  our  daily  resolu- 
tion and  endeavour,  through  God's  grace,  to  serve 
him  in  newness  of  life.  With  this  contrition,  this 
faith,  this  holy  resolution,  let  our  souls  send  forth 
the  supplication  of  the  penitent  publican.  Let  this 
prayer  be  offered  in  secret,  in  the  sanctuary,  at  all 
'seasons;  but  with  more  frequency  at  those  seasons 
when  the  church  desires  to  humble  her  members 
in  extraordinary  acts  of  humiliation  and  repent- 
ance ;  and  especially  in  that  holy  supper,  where 
the  pledges  of  pardon  and  peace,  in  the  symbols 
of  the  body  and  blood  of  a  crucified  Redeemer, 
are  extended  to  the  penitent.  Thus  shall  our  re- 
pentance be  accepted  by  that  God  who  willeth  not 
the  death  of  a  sinner ;  and  our  mourning  and  pe- 
nitence in  the  church  on  earth,  shall  be  exchanged 
for  exultation  and  bliss  in  the  church  triumphant. 

He  who  never  utters  this  prayer  of  the  penitent 
in  sincere  contrition,  in  lively  faith,  in  holy  resolu- 
tions of  obedience,  must  be  for  ever  a  stranger  to 
that  mercy  which  he  refuses  to  invoke,  and  to  that 
peace  which  he  rejects.  But  to  the  wicked,  "God 
is  a  consuming  fire."*     The  torments  of  that  eter- 

*  Heb.  xii.  20, 


THE  PETITION  OF  THE  PENITENT.  199 

xiity  to  which  they  are  hastening,  may  wring  from 
their  souls  this  prayer  for  mercy — but  it  will  be 
too  late. 

Now  then,  brethren,  in  this  accepted  time,  this 
day  of  salvation,  let  us  offer  it  with  the  deep  sin- 
cerity of  our  souls — "  God  be  merciful  to  us  sin- 
ners." And  let  us  go  to  that  holy  table,  and  plead 
the  all-sufficient  merits  of  him  who  is  there  set 
forth,  the  Lamb  of  God  that  taketh  away  the  sins 
of  the  world,  and  God  will  be  merciful  to  our  un- 
righteousness, and  our  sins  and  iniquities  will  he 
remember  no  more. 


SERMON  XVII. 


THE  NATURE  AND  NECESSITY  OF  PRAYER. 


•     Matt.  vii.  7. 

Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  you;  seek,  and  ye  shall  find ;  knock, 
and  it  shall  be  opened  unto  you. 

The  duty  of  prayer  is  enforced  by  the  dictates 
of  reason  and  the  solemn  injunctions  of  the  word 
of  God.  "  Ask,  and  it  shall  be  given  you ;  seek, 
and  ye  shall  find ;  knock,  and  it  shall  be  opened 
unto  you ;"  is  a  declaration,  which,  while  it  estab- 
lishes the  duty  of  prayer,  affords  the  most  animat- 
ing encouragements  to  the  performance  of  it :  for 
this  declaration  teaches  us  that  prayer  is  the  mean  s 
©f  procuring  whatsoever  blessings  our  infinitely 
merciful  and  gracious  Father  may  deem  requisite 
and  necessary,  as  well  for  the  body  as  for  the  soul. 

The  Sovereign  Arbiter  of  nature  and  of  grace 
has  so  arranged  the  course  of  events,  and  of  his 
moral  dispensations,  as  to  suspend  his  favours  on 
the  qualifications  of  his  intelligent  creatures,  and 
particularly  on  their  humble  and  earnest  prayers. 
In  this  suspension  of  his  favours  on  our  humble 
supplications,  there  is  not  any  thing  which  reason 
would  not  approve  and  sanction  in  a  human  go- 
vernor or  an  earthly  parent.  The  conduct  of  that 
magistrate  would  not  be  considered  wise  and  pru- 
dent, who,  intrusted  with  the  sword  of  punishment 
for  maintaining  the  welfare  of  civil  society,  should 


NATURE  AND  NECFSSITY  OP  PRAYER.     201 

remit  the  penalties  of  tiieir  crimes  to  offenders  so 
hardened  and  arrogant  as  to  refuse  to  entreat  for 
pardon  ?  Forgiveness  granted  to  such  offenders 
would  not  deserve  the  commendation  of  being  ge- 
nerous and  humane :  on  the  contrary,  it  would  be 
sui)ject  to  censure,  as  calculated  lo  give  impunity 
to  crime,  and  to  loosen  the  bands  of  civil  society. 
And  surely  that  would  not  be  wise  and  proper  in 
the  infinitely  glorious  Sovereign  on  whose  decisions 
rests  the  harmony  of  the  moral  universe,  which,  in 
a  human  agent  intrusted  with  the  authority  of  so- 
ciety to  promote  its  welfare,  we  should  condemn 
as  the  height  of  folly  and  rashness. 

Again  ;  the  human  parent  would  not  be  consi- 
dered as  pursuing  a  wise  course  to  improve  the 
moral  dispositions  of  his  children,  who  should  con- 
fer his  favours  on  the  arrogant  child,  who  disputed 
the  reasonableness  of  his  requisitions,  and  dis- 
dained the  respectful  and  dutiful  language  of  sup- 
plication and  entreaty.  It  is  with  the  view  to  form 
in  us  the  virtues  of  humility,  submission,  and  holy 
gratitude,  that  our  heavenly  Father  requires  the 
duty  of  prayer.  It  is  in  the  exercise  of  prayer  that 
we  are  taught  our  dependence  as  creatures,  our 
guilt  as  sinners ;  that  we  recognise  the  power  of 
Him  who  ruleth  over  all,  and  with  lively  gratitude 
acknowledge  the  goodness  of  Him  who  gives  us  all 
things  to  enjoy.  It  is  prayer  which  awakens  in  us 
a  sense  of  the  enormity  of  those  sins,  deliverance 
from  which  we  supplicate ;  which  engages  us  in 
earnest  endeavours  to  subdue  them  ;  and  which 
thus  cherishes  in  the  soul  that  holiness  which  con- 
stitutes her  resemblance  to  God,  who  is  infinitely 
holy,  and  reinstates  her  in  the  divine  favour. 

Prayer,  then,  is  enjoined  b^  God ;  it  is  the  chaia- 
Vol.  III.  26 


202  THE  NATURE  AND 

nel  of  communication  between  our  souls  and  the 
Father  of  mercies :  it  is  the  means  by  which  all 
holy  tempers  are  formed  in  our  hearts :  it  is  the 
condition,  in  the  performance  of  which  we  have 
the  promise  that  we  shall  obtain  what  may  be  ne- 
cessary and  convenient  for  us — "  Ask,  and  ye  shall 
receive ;  seek,  and  ye  shall  find ;  knock,  and  it 
shall  be  opened  unto  you." 

Let  us  consider  the  dispositions  with  which  our 
prayers  should  be  oftered,  in  order  to  render  them 
acceptable. 

1.  We  should  pray  with  humility. 

That  humble  temper  of  mind  which  realizes  the 
supreme  authority  and  power,  justice  and  holiness 
of  the  Almighty  Sovereign  of  the  universe,  and  our 
distance  from  him  as  creatures  and  sinners,  lies  at 
the  foundation  of  the  duty  of  prayer.  If  God  were 
not  infinitely  powerful,  just,  and  holy,  and  we  weak, 
imperfect,  and  sinful,  there  would  appear  no  cause 
to  supplicate  his  favour,  or  to  deprecate  his  wrath. 
When  we  contemplate  him  as  that  Almighty  Being 
who  at  first  spoke  the  world  into  existence,  and 
whose  providence  sustains  and  directs  the  vast  and 
complicated  machinery  of  the  universe,  regulating 
the  motions  of  the  orbs  that  traverse  infinite  space, 
as  well  as  the  course  of  the  humble  sparrow  that 
falleth  to  the  ground ;  when  we  contemplate  him 
as  the  Lord  of  the  armies  of  heaven  and  of  earth, 
glorious  in  holiness,  fearful  in  praises,  doing  won- 
ders ;  when  we  contrast  with  his  infinite  power  and 
majesty,  our  own  weakness  and  imperfection,  sprung 
as  we  are  from  the  dust,  and  fast  tending  to  it  again 
— unable  to  tell  what  a  day  may  bring  forth,  or  to 
preserve  for  an  instant  that  breath  which  flee.th  as 


NECESSITY  OP  PBAYER.  205 

a  vapour;  when  to  the  consideration  of  our  imak- 
ness  and  imperfection  we  unite  the  sense  of  our 
guilt,  burdened  as  we  are  with  offences  that  have 
insulted  the  Majesty  of  heaven  and  provoked  the 
divine  displeasure — alas !  surely  we,  who  are  worms 
of  the  dust,  creatures  of  a  day,  sinners  laden  with 
iniquity,  cannot  approach  the  most  glorious  and 
high  God  with  emotions  of  humility  too  profound ! 
"  God  resisteth  the  proud,  and  giveth  grace  unto 
the  humble."*  Humility  is  the  disposition  which 
becomes  the  suppliant ;  for  it  discovers  his  sensi- 
bility to  his  own  wants  and  to  the  power  of  his 
Almighty  Benefactor. 

Let  us  humble  ourselves,  therefore,  brethren, 
before  God,  if  we  wish  that  he  should  exalt  us. 
Let  our  humility  be  that  of  the  heart,  uniformly 
exerting  itself  in  the  virtues  of  gentleness  and 
meekness.  Let  us  not  insult  the  all-seeing  Jehovah 
with  that  spurious  humility  which,  while  it  profusely 
pours  forth  the  language  of  self-abasement,  has  not 
subdued  the  self-sufficiency  of  the  heart,  nor  cor- 
rected a  censorious  temper  and  arrogant  deport- 
ment, and  which,  in  its  lowest  abasement,  displays 
the  rankest  pride.  Let  us  cultivate  that  humility 
which,  realizing  our  manifold  imperfections,  sub- 
dues the  arrogant,  and  censorious,  and  unkind 
passions,  and  calls  forth  the  virtues  of  meekness, 
gentleness,  and  courtesy.  Our  prayers,  thus  offered 
in  that  humble  spirit  which  prostrates  us  before 
God,  and  renders  us  lowly  in  our  intercourse  with 
men,  will  be  heard  and  answered  by  that  High 
and  Holy  One,  who,  though  he  inhabiteth  eternity, 
dwelleth  with  the  man  that  is  of  an  humble  and 
contrite  spirit. 

*  1  Pet,  V.  5. 


<J04  TilE  NATURE  AND 

2.  Our  prayers  should  also  be  offered  with  pe- 
nitence. 

Humility  has  respect  principally  to  the  greatness 
and  power  of  God,  and  our  own  weakness  and 
insufficiency.  Penitence  contemplates  chiefly  his 
justice,  lioliness,  and  goodness ;  and  our  own  guilt, 
impurity  and  ingratitude. 

And,  my  brethren,  who  that  for  a  moment  looks 
into  his  heart,  which  so  many  evil  thoughts  and 
desires  corrupt — who  that  for  a  moment  reviews 
his  life,  stained  with  imperfections,  with  number- 
less violations,  if  not  of  social  duties,  of  those  which 
we  owe  to  the  all-powerful  Maker  and  Preserver  of 
our  being — can  say  that  he  has  not  sinned — that  he 
has  no  cause  to  acknowledge  his  iniquity,  and  to 
be  sorry  for  his  sin  ] 

Ah !  we  have  sirmed.  What  shall  we  say  unto 
thee,  thou  Maker,  Preserver,  and  Judge  of  men  \ 
When  we  approach  the  throne  of  thy  glory,  our 
sins  testify  against  us :  when  we  plead  for  mercy, 
they  cry  for  justice.  O  then,  Heavenly  Feather,  hear 
the  intercessions  of  Him  who  hath  made  atone- 
ment. Touch  our  souls  with  contrition,  that,  con- 
fessing our  unworthiness,  thou  mayest  be  merciful 
unto  our  unrighteousness,  and  remember  our  sins 
no  more.  O  may  our  supplications,  ascending  to 
thy  throne  from  hearts  deeply  penetrated  with 
shame  and  sorrow,  awaken  thy  compassion  and  se- 
cure thy  favour !  For  the  sacrifices  which  thou 
requires!  are  those  of  a  troubled  spirit :  a  broken 
and  contrite  heart,  O  God,  thou  wilt  not  despise. 

S.  We  must  pray  with  submission  : 
Submission  to  tiie  infinirely  wise  and  gracious 
purposes  of  Him  who,  while  he  worketh  all  things 


NECESSITY  OF  PRAYER.  205 

according  to  the  counsel  of  his  own  will,  extends 
his  tender  mercies  over  all  his  works,  and  makes 
"  all  things  work  together  for  good  to  those  who 
love  him"* — submission  to  the  merciful  will  of  that 
Heavenly  Parent,  who  often  finds  that  ii  is  a  greater 
mercy  to  us  to  deny  than  to  grant  our  supplica- 
tions ;  and  who  often  seeks  to  perfect  our  faith 
ami  patience,  by  delaying  those  blessings  which 
are  proper  for  us. 

Short-sighted  we  are  and  erring — often  pursuing 
evil  under  the  guise  of  good,  and  rejecting  a  bless- 
ing because  our  weak  judgment  pronounces  it  an 
evil.  But  our  Heavenly  Father  is  infinitely  wise  and 
infinitely  good.  When  he  delays,  mercy  prompts ; 
when  he  afflicts,  it  is  goodness  which  guides  the 
pod  ;  when  he  withholds,  it  is  wisdom,  infinite  wis- 
dom which  refuses  to  grant  what,  in  ignorance  of 
our  best  interests,  we  had  asked.  Let  us  then  pray 
to  this,  the  wisest  and  the  best  of  Beings,  submit- 
ting to  his  wise  and  good  providence ;  and  let  us 
qualify  our  entreaties  for  deliverance  from  those 
temporal  evils  which  we  most  dread,  with  the  holy 
language  of  resignation — "  Not  my  will,  Heavenly 
Father,  but  thine  be  done."t 

4.  But  while  we  pray  with  submission,  we  must 
pray  with  earnestness ; 

With  an  earnestness,  in  some  degree  at  least, 
proportioned  to  the  magnitude  and  value  of  the 
blessings  which  we  implore,  and  to  the  greatness 
and  seriousness  of  the  evils  which  we  deprecate — 
with  an  earnestness  in  some  degree  proportioned 
to  the  power,  the  glory,  and  the  perfection  of  the 
High  and  Holy  One  whom  we  adore,  and  to  our 

*  Rom.  vUi.  38.  t  Luke  jtxii,  43. 


206  THE  NATURE  ANl) 

incompetency  to  offer  him,  at  best,  a  just  tribute  of 
homage. 

When  we  contemplate  the  infinite  perfection  and 
goodness  of  that  God  at  whose  throne  we  are  pros- 
trate— the  loving-kindness  of  him  in  whom  we  live, 
and  move,  and  have  our  being — the  numberless  tem- 
poral and  spiritual  mercies  bestowed  upon  us  by  that 
gracious  Benefactor,  who  ever  watches  over  us  for 
good — above  all,  when  we  contemplate  the  glorious 
privileges  of  that  redemption  wrought  for  us  by  his 
eternal  and  well-beloved  Son,  our  souls  and  all 
that  is  within  us  must  be  awakened  with  holy  fer- 
Tour  to  praise  the  Lord,  and  to  magnify  his  holy 
name. 

And  alas !  when  we  consider  our  frailty  and  in- 
firmity, and  review  the  many  formidable  evils  which 
assail  our  feeble  frames — the  terror  by  night,  the 
arrow  that  flieth  by  day,  the  pestilence  that  walk- 
eth  in  darkness,  and  the  destruction  that  wasteth 
at  noon-day ;  when  our  spiritual  enemies  encom- 
pass us — the  world  alluring,  the  flesh  seducing, 
the  great  adversary  assailing  us ;  when  the  lake 
that  burneth  for  ever  opens  beneath  our  wandering 
and  guilty  footsteps,  whither  shall  we  fly  in  fer- 
vent supplication,  but  to  him  who  is  the  Father  of 
our  spirits,  and  beseech  him  to  grant  us  health, 
and  life,  and  strength,  and  salvation  l 

From  thee  alone,  God  of  power  and  of  goodness, 
Cometh  our  help.  Thy  throne  will  we  approach, 
and  with  holy  earnestness  invoke  thy  guidance, 
until  thou  bring  us  to  thy  holy  hill,  and  to  that 
eternal  rest,  from  which,  as  the  everlasting  portion 
of  thy  saints,  thou  hast  excluded  sickness,  and  sor- 
row, and  temptation,  and  sin. 


NECESSITY  OF  PRAYER.  207 

5.  But  the  earnestness  of  our  supplications  must 
be  chastened  by  reverence. 

We  must  be  earnest,  because  our  wants  are  ma- 
nifold ;  we  must  be  earnest,  because  many  of  the 
evils  which  we  deprecate,  and  the  blessings  which 
we  implore,  are  infinite  ;  and  we  must  be  earnest, 
because  the  Being  whom  we  worship  is  worthy  of 
our  warmest  praises.  But  we  must  also  be  reve- 
rent; because  Jehovah  is  a  great  God  and  terrible, 
clothed  with  majesty  and  honour.  It  would  be  a 
mockery  of  the  High  and  Holy  One,  for  creatures 
who,  deprived  of  his  sustaining  power,  would 
perish,  to  approach  him  with  insincerity;  and  it 
would  be  an  insult  to  the  Sovereign  Jehovah,  for 
worms  of  the  dust,  for  sinners  laden  with  guilt,  to 
approach  him  with  bold  familiarity,  with  careless 
and  unadvised  lips.  Oh !  let  us  not  insult  that 
Being,  before  whom  angels  cast  their  crowns  and 
cherubim  and  seraphim  vail  their  faces,  with  the 
light  effusions  of  a  frivolous  heart :  let  us  not  dis- 
honour him  with  the  unhallowed  language  of  a 
heated  imagination :  let  us  not  provoke  him  by 
our  bold  expostulations,  our  familiar  addresses,  as 
if  we  were  his  equals.  Great  God!  let  us  not  thus 
profane  thy  name,  lest  thou  punish  us  in  thy  wrath: 
let  thy  fear  fall  upon  us,  let  thine  excellency  make 
us  afraid. 

6.  And  that  our  prayers  may  be  accepted,  we 
must  pray  with  constancy. 

It  is  the  apostolic  injunction,  "Pray  tcithout 

ceasing  ;"*  that  is,  we  must  constantly  cherish  the 

spirit  of  prayer,  habitually  lift  up  our  souls  to  God 

in  devout  and  humble  aspirations,  and  persevere  in 

*  1  Th^ss.  V.  17. 


208  THE  NATURE  AND 

the  regular  discharge  of  the  stated  exercises  of  de- 
votion in  public  and  in  private.  Prayer  which  is 
inconstant  and  irregular,  is  unvvortijy  of  the  name, 
insulting  to  the  great  and  glorious  Being  to  whom 
it  is  oftered,  and  incompatible  with  that  snicerity 
and  earnestness  which  are  the  indispensable  cha- 
racteristics of  true  devotion.  Under  all  discourage- 
ments and  trials  we  should  pray  and  not  faint ;  for 
though  God  may  for  a  while  delay,  yet  he  will 
finally  come,  and  will  not  tarry.  The  Lord  is  the 
ho}>e  of  his  people;  there  is  no  Saviour  beside  him. 
On  him  therefore  let  us  wait ;  let  us  tarry  his  lei- 
sure ;  let  us  be  strong,  constant,  and  persevering 
in  our  supplications,  and  he  will  finally  comfort  our 
hearts. 

7.  To  insure  the  acceptance  of  our  prayers,  they 
must  also  be  accompanied  with  holy  resolutions 
and  endeavours. 

To  come  before  the  Most  Holy  One  with  hearts 
and  hands  defiled  with  iniquity;  to  adore  his  ma- 
jesty, his  power,  his  justice,  and  his  mercy,  while 
we  discover  in  our  lives  no  sense  or  acknowledg- 
ment of  his  glorious  perfections ;  to  implore  from 
him  the  forgiveness  of  our  sins,  and  to  deprecate 
his  displeasure,  while  we  are  continually  adding  to 
the  catalogue  of  our  iniquities ;  to  beseech  him  to 
create  a  clean  heart  and  to  renew  a  right  spirit 
within  us,  while  we  discover  no  solicitude  and 
exert  no  endeavours  to  serve  him  in  newness  of  life 
— oh!  this  surely  is  that  hypocrisy  which  is  hate- 
ful in  his  sight,  and  which  renders  the  prayers  of 
the  wicked  an  abomination  unto  him.  No  ;  watch- 
fulness jnust  be  united  to  our  prayers,  to  render 
them  acceptable  and  efficacious.  While  we  humbly 


NECESSITY  OF  PRAYER.  209 

implore  the  God  of  our  salvation  to  redeem  us  from 
iniquity,  we  must  exert  our  earnest  resolutions  and 
endeavours  to  cease  to  do  evil,  and  to  learn  to  do 
well;  to  put  from  us  our  evil  doings,  and  to  perfect 
holiness  in  the  fear  of  God.  Then  only  will  our 
prayers  and  praises  ascend  as  acceptable  incense 
to  that  Almighty  Jehovah  who  is  of  purer  eyes  than 
to  behold  iniquity,  and  who  cannot  look  on  sin  but 
-with  abhorrence. 

8.  But,  lastly,  vain  will  be  our  prayers,  unless 
offered  in  faith. 

Without  faith,  it  is  impossible  to  please  God : 
for  it  is  a  self-evident  principle,  that  "  he  that 
Cometh  to  God  must  believe  that  he  is,  and  that 
he  is  the  rewarder  of  them  that  diligently  seek 
him."*  To  offer  our  supplications  to  a  being  insen- 
sible to  our  wants,  or  indisposed  and  unable  to  sup- 
ply them,  would  be  folly ;  and  to  offer  our  prayers 
to  the  ever-living  God,  without  realizing  those 
perfections  which  are  the  object  of  our  homao-e, 
and  those  infinite  merits  of  his  eternal  Son  which 
are  the  foundation  of  our  confidence,  would  be  an 
idle  and  unprofitable  service,  and  a  mockery  of  his 
holy  name.  Faith  then  must  animate  and  direct 
our  prayers. 

By  faith  we  must  realize  the  eternal  Jehovah  in 
all  the  fulness  of  his  perfections,  in  his  infinitely 
interesting  relations  to  us,  and  in  the  resistless  ex- 
tent of  his  dominion.  We  must  view  him  as  that 
first  of  Beings,  who  laid  the  foundations  of  the 
earth,  stretched  forth  the  heavens,  and  still  ruleth 
in  that  earth  and  heavens  which  are  the  work  of 

*  Heb,  xi.  6, 

Vol,  III.  27 


210     NATURE  AND  NECESSITY  OP  PRAYER. 

his  hands.  We  must  believe  that  this  infinitely 
wise  and  gracious  Being,  whose  is  the  whole  earth, 
who  knoweth  all  the  fowls  upon  the  mountains, 
and  the  cattle  upon  a  thousand  hills,  is  ever  ready 
to  open  his  hand  and  to  satisfy  the  desires  of  those 
who  humbly  call  upon  him.  Especially  we  must 
believe,  as  the  only  foundation  on  which,  as  sin- 
ners, we  can  stand,  that  this  righteous  Governor  of 
the  universe,  whom  by  our  sins  we  have  offended, 
is  in  Christ  reconciling  us  unto  himself,  not  imput- 
ing unto  us,  truly  penitent,  our  trespasses  and  sins. 
Adoring  his  mercy  in  the  plan  of  redemption  through 
his  eternal  Son,  we  must  bring  down  every  high 
imagination,  and  renouncing  all  confidence  in  our 
own  merits,  present  our  supplications  only  in  the 
name  and  mediation  of  the  great  Redeemer.  What- 
soever we  shall  ask  which  is  necessary  and  proper 
for  us,  thus  believing,  we  shall  receive  :  for  "  the 
Lord  is  nigh  unto  all  them  that  call  upon  him,  yea, 
all  such  as  call  upon  him  faithfully."* 

Behold  then,  brethren,  the  dispositions  which 
alone  can  render  our  prayers  acceptable  to  God. 
Cherish  correct  and  lively  views  of  the  eternal  and 
glorious  perfections  of  the  Being  whom  you  wor- 
ship, and  a  deep  and  constant  sense  of  your  own 
weakness,  unworthiness,  and  insufficiency ;  and 
offer  your  supplications  with  penitent,  submissive, 
and  obedient  hearts,  with  lively,  earnest,  and  per- 
severing faith,  to  the  Author  of  your  being,  the 
Benefactor  of  your  lives,  the  God  of  your  salvation, 
from  whom  cometh  every  good  and  perfect  gift. 
Thus  "  ask,  and  ye  shall  receive ;  thus  seek,  and 
ye  shall  find ;  thus  knock,  and  it  shall  be  opened 
unto  you." 

*  Psalm  cxlv.  18. 


SERMON   XVIIL 


THE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE  IN  OUR  CHRISTIAN  CALLING. 


2  Peteb  i.  10. 
(tive  diligence  to  make  your  calling  and  election  sure. 

Is  it  possible,  then,  that  an  election  can  be  ab- 
solute, unconditional,  and  certain,  which  we  are 
exhorted  to  secure  by  our  diligence  1  Is  it  not  evi- 
dent, on  the  contrary,  that  our  calling  must  be  a 
title,  through  the  free  grace  of  God,  to  particular 
blessings  and  privileges  which  it  depends  upon 
ourselves  either  to  secure  or  to  forfeit  ]  Yes,  ray 
brethren,  the  election  spoken  of  in  Scripture  is  an 
election  to  spiritual  privileges  and  mercies  in  the 
present  life.  It  has  no  reference,  as  some  sects  of 
Christians  in  modern  times  have  supposed,  to  the 
eternal  destiny  of  mankind. 

This  election  to  spiritual  privileges  in  the  pre- 
sent life,  which,  in  respect  to  our  eternal  existence, 
are  to  be  secured  by  the  fulfilment  of  the  conditions 
on  which  they  are  suspended,  has  taken  place  from 
the  beginning.  God  chose  Abraham  and  his  pos- 
terity to  be  his  peculiar  people :  he  called  them  to 
the  knowledge  of  his  name,  his  will,  and  his  wor- 
ship. The  rest  of  mankind,  left  to  the  light  of 
reason,  and  primeval  revelation  as  handed  down 
by  tradition,  would  be  judged  by  the  standard  of 
what  they  had  received ;  and  since  to  them  less 


212  THE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE 

was  given,  less  would  be  required  from  them.  The 
Judge  of  the  whole  earth  will  do  right. 

God  chose,  of  the  children  of  Abraham,  the  pos- 
terity of  Isaac,  and  not  of  Ishmael,  to  be  his  peculiar 
people;  and  in  like  manner  he  chose  the  posteritjr 
of  Jacob,  and  not  of  Esau,  to  receive  the  know- 
ledge of  his  will,  and  to  be  the  subjects  in  this 
life  of  his  spiritual  mercies.  In  this  sense  he  is 
said  to  have  "  loved  Jacob  and  hated  Esau."  But 
it  does  not  follow,  that  because  the  posterity  of 
Jacob  and  not  of  Esau  were  elected  to  be  God's 
peculiar  people  on  earth,  that  therefore  all  the 
posterity  of  the  one  were  absolutely  elected,  by 
the  sovereign  decree  of  God,  to  everlasting  happi- 
ness, which  they  therefore  could  not  fail  of  obtain- 
ing ;  and  all  the  posterity  of  the  other  reprobated, 
by  the  same  tremendous  fiat,  to  everlasting  misery, 
which  they  could  not  fail  of  incurring.  No ;  they 
will  all  stand  at  the  day  of  judgment  on  the  foot- 
ing of  their  works — of  what  they  have  done,  whe- 
ther it  be  good  or  evil ;  they  will  be  judged  accord- 
ing to  the  improvement  which  they  have  made  of 
the  talents  committed  to  them. 

In  like  manner,  God  in  his  eternal  counsels  re- 
solved to  call  both  Jews  and  Gentiles  to  the  know- 
ledge of  the  Gospel  of  his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  and 
to  make  the  conditional  offer  of  salvation  to  them 
all:  and  those  who  accepted  the  gracious  overture, 
who  obeyed  the  merciful  call,  whether  they  were 
Jews  or  Gentiles,  and  believing  on  his  Son  Jesus 
Christ,  were  admitted  into  covenant  with  him  by 
the  sacrament  of  baptism,  became  his  peculiar 
people — ^*  the  election  of  grace,"  as  the  apostle 
terms  them  in  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans.  This 
election  of  the  believini?  Jews  and  Gentiles  to  the 


IN  OUR  CHRISTIAN  CALLING.  213 

blessings  of  the  Gospel,  was,  in  the  language  of 
the  apostle,  "  through  the  free  grace  of  God ;  not 
of  works,"  not  of  any  thing  which  they  had  pre- 
viously done,  or  hereafter  could  do,  to  merit  abso- 
lutely this  distinguishing  favour  of  their  offended 
Maker.  Indeed,  even  the  final  election  of  faithful 
and  obedient  Christians  to  everlasting  life,  cannot 
be,  strictly  speaking,  of  works :  for  it  is  the  obvious 
sentiment  of  reason,  that  man,  the  creature  of 
God's  power,  and  the  sinner  obnoxious  to  his  jus- 
tice, cannot  do  any  thing  which  will  absolutely 
merit  that  everlasting  salvation,  which  so  much 
transcends  the  most  exalted  services  which  he  can 
possibly  render.  This  salvation  must  be  the  free, 
unmerited  gift  of  that  Almighty  Maker  and  Sove- 
reign of  mankind,  who,  as  he  could  in  justice  with- 
hold it,  in  infinite  mercy  and  love  only  dispenses  it. 

In  calling  mankind  to  the  privileges  of  the  Gospel 
in  the  present  life,  God  acts  as  a  Sovereign  who 
kas  a  right  to  dispense  his  unmerited  favours  to 
whom  he  will.  But  still  the  decisions  of  the  last 
day  will  be  regulated  by  those  eternal  and  immutable 
rules  of  justice,  which  are  the  pillars  that  support 
the  divine  throne.  God  will  judge  every  man  ac- 
cording to  his  works ;  and  the  eternal  destiny  of 
those  whom  he  hath  not  called  to  the  kingdom  of 
his  Son,  he  will  determine  according  to  the  use 
which  they  have  made  of  the  light  and  knowledge 
which  he  hath  vouchsafed  to  them ;  they  will  be 
judged  according  to  what  they  have,  and  not  ac- 
cording to  what  they  have  not,  through  the  merits 
of  Him  who  was  slain  from  the  foundation  of  the 
world,  in  respect  to  the  eflicacy  of  that  propitiation 
which  he  made  for  the  sins  of  the  whole  world. 

The  Jews  of  old  were  denominated  the  chosen 


214  THE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE 

people,  the  elect  of  God,  because  he  had  selected 
them  from  the  rest  of  the  world,  to  particular  spi- 
ritual privileges.  In  like  manner,  the  whole  body 
of  Christians  are  called  the  chosen  generation,, 
elected  and  predestinated,  because  they  are  called 
out  of  the  rest  of  the  world,  to  the  blessings  and 
privileges  of  the  Gospel.  But  as  neither  the  whole 
body  of  the  Jews,  though  the  elect  of  God,  finally 
obtained  his  everlasting  favour,  neither  will  the 
whole  body  of  Christians,  though  called  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  Gospel,  to  the  participations  of 
the  means  and  privileges  of  salvation,  be  finally 
chosen  to  everlasting  life.  They  may  fail  to  avail 
themselves  of  the  knowledge  which  is  afforded 
them — to  improve  the  means  of  grace  which  they 
enjoy — to  cherish  the  privileges  extended  to  them 
— and  thus  finally  become  castaways.  Their  call- 
ing is  conditional — their  final  election  to  glory  is 
uncertain ;  awfully  important,  therefore,  the  ex- 
liortation — "  Give  all  diligence  to  make  your  call- 
ing and  election  sure." 

Yes ;  all  those  now  present,  who  have  been  ad- 
mitted by  baptism  into  the  church,  the  mystical 
body  of  Christ — for  which  he  purchased,  by  his 
death,  the  blessings  of  mercy  and  life  eternal,  and 
which  he  hath  endued  with  his  Holy  Spirit,  to  be 
the  mysterious  but  powerful  agent  of  the  satisfac- 
tion of  its  members—are  the  called,  the  elect  of 
God.  You  are  elected  to  the  participation  of  all 
the  glorious  privileges  of  salvation  ;  to  the  forgive- 
ness of  your  sins — to  the  enlightening  and  purify- 
ing influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit — to  the  gracious 
guidance  and  protection  of  God,  your  heavenly 
Father — to  everlasting  life  in  his  presence.  This 
glorious  election  is  conditional ;  its  exalted  privi 


IN  OUR  CHRISTIAN  CALLING.  215 

leges  you  may  forfeit ;  they  can  be  secured  only 
by  true  repentance  and  faith,  producing  holy  obe- 
dience. The  diligent  and  faithful  servant  of  the 
Lord  only  will  be  rewarded  ;  everlasting  glory  will 
be  conferred  only  on  those  who  are  prepared  by 
the  holy  graces  which  they  have  acquired  to  enjoy 
it.  Reflect  then  on  the  exalted  privileges  to  which 
you  are  called — reflect  that  your  everlasting  happi- 
ness depends  on  your  securing  them-— everlasting 
misery  is  the  penalty  of  your  neglecting  them. 
What  force  then  in  the  exhortation — "  Give  all  di- 
ligence to  make  your  calling  and  election  sure." 

Do  you  desire  then  to  secure  the  glorious  salva- 
tion to  which  you  are  called  1 

1.  You  must  devote  to  it  your  supreme  solici- 
tude, attention,  and  exertions. 

Our  redemption  from  the  ignominious  bondage 
of  sin  ;  our  adoption  as  the  children  of  God ;  our 
attainment  of  the  perfection  and  felicity  of  heaven, 
are  objects  which,  infinitely  important,  should,  above 
all  others,  awaken,  interest,  occupy  all  the  powers 
and  feelings  of  our  souls.  The  necessity  of  solici- 
tude and  attention  arises  also  from  the  number  and 
magnitude  of  the  difficulties  which  vre  have  to  en- 
counter. The  Christian  life  is  a  life  of  conflict 
with  formidable  enemies ;  with  the  sinful  lusts  of 
the  heart — with  the  ensnaring  pleasures  of  the 
world — with  the  temptations  of  the  great  adver- 
sary. In  the  work  of  salvation,  therefore,  the 
greatest  solicitude  and  attention  are  necessary  to 
ensure  success.  We  must  strive  with  intenseness 
and  with  perseverance  to  enter  in  at  the  strait 
gate,  which  only  opens  to  the  kingdom  of  heaven  : 
we  must  direct  our  most  vigorous  exertions  to  the 


216  TITE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE 

attainment  of  those  spiritual  and  celestial  graces 
and  virtues  which  only  can  secure  to  us  the  infi- 
nitely exalted  privileges  of  our  Christian  calling, 
and  prepare  us  for  the  enjoyment  of  the  presence 
of  God.  ; 

Behold  the  votaries  of  the  world  engaged  in  their 
favourite  pursuits — With  what  unremitting  assiduity 
do  they  follow  up  the  chace  of  pleasure  l  What  agi- 
tations, what  chagrins,  what  disappoinments  over- 
whelm, but  not  intimidate,  the  votaries  of  ambition  t 
What  laborious  application,  days  of  toil,  nights  of 
thoughtfulness,  are  bestowed  on  the  pursuit  of 
riches  1  The  world  excites  the  supreme  solicitude, 
and  engrosses  the  undivided  attention  of  those  who 
choose  it  as  their  supreme  good.  Are  the  blessings 
of  salvation  of  less  value  1  Are  eternal  riches,  ho- 
nours, and  joys,  to  be  purchased  with  fewer  sacri- 
fices, with  less  application,  with  less  devoted  exer- 
tion '!  Shall  we  rate  the  everlasting  favour  of  God 
at  a  lower  price  than  those  things  of  the  world 
which  he  has  stamped  with  vanity  and  decay,  and 
from  which  death  will  wrest  us  for  ever  ? 

My  brethren,  it  is  a  law  of  nature,  that  no  object 
worthy  of  our  pursuit  is  to  be  obtained  but  with 
solicitude,  attention,  exertion;  and  if  these  should 
be  in  proportion  to  the  excellence  and  importance 
of  the  object  of  pursuit,  surely  a  concern  for  our 
salvation  ought  lo  occupy  the  first  place  in  our 
thoughts  and  exeitions ;  and  the  present  life,  in- 
stead of  being  the  sole  object  of  our  solicitude, 
should  be  regarded  as  of  importance  only  as  it  is 
that  state  of  probation  allotted  us  for  working  out 
our  salvation  and  securing  an  eternal  inheritance. 
The  privileges  of  our  Christian  calling — privileges 
which  will  confer  peace  on  us  here,  and  terminate 


IN  OUR  CHRISTIAN  CALLING.  217 

in  endless  happiness  hereafter — are  the  infinitely 
important  objects  which,  in  the  bustle  of  business, 
in  the  competitions  of  ambition,  in  the  career 
of  worldly  prosperity,  should  fix  supremely  our 
thoughts,  and  regulate  all  our  feelings  and  conduct. 
But  further, 

2.  In  order  to  make  our  calling  and  election 
sure,  we  must,  in  the  exercise  of  true  repentance, 
five  in  constant  dependence  on  the  merits  and 
grace  of  Christ. 

For,  through  his  merits  alone,  (so  it  hath  pleased 
our  offended  Sovereign  and  Judge  to  ordain,)  salva- 
tion is  attainable  ;  and  in  his  grace  alone  shall  we 
find  the  effectual  power  of  resisting  temptation, 
and  acquiring  the  virtues  of  the  Christian  character 
and  life. 

What  was  the  trust  of  the  apostle,  which  con- 
soled him  under  the  appalling  conviction  that  he 
was  the  chief  of  sinners  1  What  was  the  source  of 
that  dauntless  courage,  that  heroic  constancy,  that 
triumphant  hope,  which  distinguished  him  as  the 
faithful  and  zealous  servant  of  his  divine  Lord? 
We  hear  him  declaring,  amidst  the  highest  attain- 
ments and  the  most  exalted  acts  of  Christian  virtue, 
that  it  was  not  "  he  which  thus  lived,  but  Christ 
that  lived  in  him ;  and  that  the  life  which  he  lived 
in  the  fleshy  he  lived  by  the  faith  of  the  Son  of 
God."*  Here  then  is  a  pattern  to  all  who  are  par- 
takers of  the  Christian  calling,  .lesus  Christ  they 
are  to  adore,  and  in  him  they  are  to  confide,  as  the 
Author  and  Finisher  of  their  salvation ;  whose  di- 
vine merits  constitute  their  only  claim  to  the  for- 

*  Gal.  ii.  20. 

Vol.  III.  28 


218  THE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE 

giveness  and  favour  of  their  offended  God  ;  and 
whose  renovating  and  strengthening  grace  is  the 
only  fountain  of  those  celestial  virtues  vi^hich  will 
make  them  meet  for  the  inheritance  of  glory. 
These  merits  will  be  applied  only  to  those  who, 
renouncing  their  sins  and  their  self-righteousness, 
habitually  rely  on  him  who,  the  only  Saviour,  hath 
reconciled  us  unto  God.  And  this  grace  will  be 
bestowed  only  on  those  who,  in  true  humility,  seek 
it  as  the  unfailing  and  abundant  source  of  holiness, 
of  strength,  and  of  consolation. 

Secure  then,  brethren,  the  privileges  of  your 
Christian  calling,  your  redemption  from  eternal 
wrath,  your  title  to  heavenly  felicity,  by  reposing, 
with  lively  and  holy  faith,  on  the  all-sufficient  me- 
rits of  your  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  Let 
the  hope  of  your  deliverance  from  the  power  of 
sin,  your  restoration  to  holiness  and  virtue,  be 
founded  on  his  almighty  grace  enlightening  your 
minds,  purifying  your  hearts,  strengthening  you  for 
the  discharge  of  every  duty,  for  the  conflict  with 
every  temptation.  Iniplore  the  holy  influences  of 
that  Divine  Spirit  which  animates  that  church,  the 
mystical  body  of  Christ,  of  which  you  are  members ; 
and  cherish  and  follow  his  blessed  influences  and 
inspirations,  and  he  will  confirm  to  you  the  glorious 
privileges  of  your  Christian  calling,  will  lead  you 
with  increasing  vigour  through  your  course,  till  at 
length,  in  the  fulness  of  holiness  and  peace,  you 
appear  before  God  in  the  heave  nly  .Zion. 

But  in  order  to  become  partakers  of  those  divine 
virtues  which  are  the  gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and 
which  are  necessary  to  secure  to  us  the  glorious 
privileges  of  our  Christian  calling,  we  must, 


IN  OUR  CHRISTIAN  CALLING.  219 

3.  Finally,  constantly  and  faithfully  aiming  at 
abounding  in  all  the  fruits  of  righteousness,  attend 
on  all  the  divinely  constituted  means  of  instruction 
and  grace. 

Our  vocation  as  Christians  demands  of  us  the 
renunciation  of  all  sinful  passions  and   pursuits, 
supreme  devotedness  to  God,   unfeigned   love  to 
him,  and  constant  obedience  to  his  commands.    In 
those  who  are  finally  admitted  to  his  holy  presence 
in  his  kingdom  above,  every  sinful  passion  must  be 
subdued,  and   every  holy  grace   established.     To 
gain  a  victory  over  all  their  sinful  passions,  and  to 
abound  in  righteousness,  and  goodness,  and  truth, 
must  be   the   uniform   object  of  those,  therefore, 
who  look  forward  to  the  glorious  fruition  of  the 
divine  presence  in  the  kingdom  of  heaven.   To  aid 
them  in  this  warfare,  to  insure  their  success  in 
their  holy  aims,    they   are  furnished  with    divine 
means  of  instruction  and  grace.   The  word  of  God 
is  a  lamp  unto  their  feet  and  a  light  to  their  path. 
He  hath  promised  to  answer  their  humble  prayers 
by  the  gift  of  his  Holy  Spirit.     He  hath  insured  to 
them  the  presence  of  this  blessed  Comforter,  Sanc- 
tifier,  and  Guide,  in  the  ordinances  of  his  church 
on  earth,  in  which  they  are  to  be  trained  for  the 
joys  and  glory  of  the  church  triumphant  in  heaven. 
Devout  meditation,  therefore,  on  the  word  of  God; 
frequent  and  earnest  prayers  to  him  for  his  Holy 
Spirit;  uniform  and  faithful  attendance  on  the  wor- 
ship and  ordinances  of  the  church — are  sacred  du- 
ties incumbent  on  Christians ;  they  are  the  only 
means  by  which  they  can  derive  strength  to  resist 
and  overcome  the  temptations  which  assail  them, 
and  to  love  and  serve  their  God  and  Saviour ;  they 
are  the  only  means  by  which  they  can  be  enabled 


220  THE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE 

to  fulfil  the  holy  engagements  and  secure  the  glo- 
rious privileges  of  their  calling  in  Jesus  Christ. 

How  vain  then  the  expectation,  brethren,  of  se- 
curing the  blessings  of  that  salvation  to  which  we 
are  called,  while  we  neglect,  or  only  partially  use 
the  means  which  God  for  this  purpose  hath  ap- 
pointed !  Is  it  possible  to  advance  in  the  know- 
ledge of  the  will  of  God — of  the  nature  of  the  plan 
of  salvation  through  Jesus  Christ — of  the  duties 
and  privileges  of  our  Christian  vocation,  while  we 
neglect  the  study  of  that  sacred  volume  in  which 
only  these  infinitely  momentous  subjects  are  exhi- 
bited 1  Can  we  hope  to  obtain  the  forgiveness  and 
blessing  of  God,  while  we  neglect  the  means  on 
which  they  are  suspended — earnest  supplication 
and  prayer  ?  Can  we  expect  to  be  trained  up  for 
the  praises  and  bliss  of  heaven,  while  wc  neglect 
the  worship  and  ordinances  of  God's  church  on 
earth  1  Let  us  not  deceiv6  ourselves.  As  proba- 
tioners for  an  immortal  existence,  surely  it  should 
be  our  supreme  concern  and  aim  to  prepare  for 
the  awful  scenes  which  that  existence  will  disclose. 
Let  us  then  constantly  and  devoutly  meditate  on 
God's  holy  word :  let  us  supplicate  in  earnest  prayer 
his  forgiveness  and  blessing — his  grace  to  create  a 
clean  heart  and  to  renew  a  right  spirit  within  us : 
let  us  express  our  reverence  and  love  towards  him 
in  the  worship  of  his  church:  by  our  regular  and 
devout  attendance  on  its  ministratio'ns,  let  us  seek 
to  fortify  our  souls  in  all  holy  dispositions,  and  prin- 
ciples, and  resolutions :  let  us  study  to  be  sincere 
and  faithful  members  of  Christ's  church  on  earthy 
and  thus  to  make  our  calling  and  election  sure ; 
and  in  his  good  time  we  shall  be  exalted  to  that 
heavenly  kingdom  where  the  redeemed  of  the  Lord 


IN  OUR  CHRISTIAN  CALLINCf.  221 

cease  not  day  nor  night  to  celebrate  hia  praises, 
and  to  partake  of  the  fulness  of  his  love. 

Consider,  I  beseech  you,  the  folly  and  guilt  of 
neglecting  and  contemning  the  inestimable  bless- 
ings of  salvation  which  are  proffered  to  us.  God 
hath  called  us  into  his  holy  church,  in  which  the 
merits  of  his  Son  are  appHed  to  us  for  the  forgive- 
ness of  our  sins ;  the  powerful  grace  of  his  Holy 
Spirit  dispensed  to  purify  us  from  all  iniquity,  and 
to  establish  us  in  holiness  and  virtue ;  and  everlast- 
ing life  profltered  as  the  prize  of  our  high  calling  in 
Jesus  Christ.  When  we  may  attain  a  destiny  thus 
glorious,  be  partakers  of  the  inheritance  of  the 
saints  in  light,  shall  we  continue  under  the  domi- 
nion of  sin,  and  choose  the  miserable  destiny  of 
sinners  1  Shall  the  intercession  of  the  Son  of  God 
be  in  vain  exerted  for  us — the  Holy  Spirit  in  vain 
proffer  his  powerful  aids  and  consolations — ever- 
lasting life  in  vain  solicit  our  acceptance  and  ex- 
cite our  exertions  ?  If  so,  better  had  it  been  for  us 
never  to  have  known  the  way  of  righteousness— 
never  to  have  been  called  to  God's  grace  and  mercy. 
Health  and  prosperity  affording  the  means  of  sen- 
sual enjoyment,  may  now  appear  to  sanction  the 
policy  of  that  choice  which  may  have  devoted  us 
to  the  world ;  but  sickness  and  death  are  monitors 
that  will  come — unwelcome  as  they  may  be,  come 
they  will — and  they  are  monitors  that  will  speak — 
monitors  which  we  must  hear.  In  the  dark  and 
agonizing  hours  when  sickness  and  death  assail 
us,  oh !  how  much,  how  much  shall  we  need  the 
support  and  the  consolation  which  no  human  arm, 
no  human  voice  can  supply— the  support  and  con- 
solation that  come  only  from  the  living  God  !  Alas, 
alas !  in  the  days  of  health  and  prosperity  we  des- 


222  THE  NECESSITY  OF  DILIGENCE,  «fec. 

pised  his  warnings,  we  rejected  his  merciful  invita- 
tions, we  would  none  of  his  counsel ;  and  our  per- 
plexed and  fearful  spirits  are  left,  solitary,  unsus- 
tained,  to  look  back  on  a  life  of  folly  and  of  sin, 
whereby  we  have  forfeited  our  title  as  children  of 
God  and  heirs  of  heaven,  and  made  ourselves  the 
bond-slaves  of  Satan  and  the  heirs  of  hell. 

But  if  to  secure  the  privileges  of  our  Christian 
calling  be  our  supreme  concern — if  truly  repenting 
of  our  sins,  and  depending  on  the  merits  and  grace 
of  the  Saviour,  and  faithfully  using  all  the  means 
of  divine  instruction  and  grace,  we  seek-  supremely 
to  love  and  to  serve  him  who  hath  called  us  with 
our  high,  and  holy,  and  heavenly  calling — then  we 
shall  enjoy  here  a  happiness  which  no  changes  cart 
subvert,  no  afflictions  blast;  and  which  even  death, 
the  universal  spoiler,  cannot  wrest  from  us ;  for 
death  will  then  be  stripped  of  his  terrors,  and  wel- 
comed as  the  messenger  that  leads  us  to  the  con- 
summation of  the  privileges  of  our  Christian  calling, 
in  the  eternal  vision  and  enjoyment  of  God — infinite 
truth,  supreme  good,  exhaustlesa  felicity. 


SERMON   XIX. 


THE  GRACE  OF  GOD  REQUIRING  HUMAN  CO-OPERATIOX. 


Philippians  ii.  12,  13. 

Work  out  your  own  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling.  For  it  is 
God  which  worketh  in  you  both  to  will  and  to  do  of  his  good 
pleasure. 

To  the  man  who  seriously  reflects  on  his  spiritual 
character,  on  his  condition  as  a  candidate  for  im- 
mortality, the  important  inquiry  will  frequently 
occur; — How  am  I  to  attain  the  salvation  of  my 
soul  1  In  this  momentous  concern,  am  I  to  rely 
solely  on  my  own  endeavours'?  or  are  my  own  en- 
deavours to  be  entirely  superseded  by  the  effica- 
cious grace  of  God  1  My  text  resolves  these  inqui- 
ries— "  Work  out  your  own  salvation  with  fear  and 
trembling.  For  it  is  God  which  worketh  in  you  both 
to  will  and  to  do  of  his  good  pleasure." 

The  concurrence  of  human  agency  with  divine 
grace  is  the  important  doctrine  here  established. 

On  this  doctrine  the  following  views  may  be 
presented  : 

1.  There  are  two  opposite  opinions  on  the  sub- 
ject of  human  agency  and  divine  grace,  which  are 
both  erroneous. 

2.  The  correct  doctrine  embraces  a  portion  of 
both  these  opinions. 

S.  This  doctrine  is  perfectly  agreeable  to  reason, 
and  may  be  vindicated  from  all  objections. 
4.  Its  practical  influence  is  highly  important. 


224  THE  GRACE  OF  GOD 

1.  On  the  subject  of  human  agency  and  divine 
grace  in  the  work  of  salvation  there  are  two  oppo- 
site opinions,  and  both  erroneous. 

The  first  opinion  ascribes  every  thing  to  human 
agency,  and  discards  divine  grace. 

The  advocates  of  this  opinion  lay  the  foundation 
of  their  reasonings  in  support  of  it,  in  the  nature 
of  virtue.  In  what  consists,  say  they,  the  essence 
of  human  virtue,  but  in  the  free  choice  of  the  hu- 
man will  ?  If  man  is  irresistibly  impelled  by  some 
superior  power  to  a  certain  course  of  action,  where 
is  its  merit  or  demerit  1  If  he  is  thus  bound  by  the 
iron  chains  of  necessity,  where  is  his  freedom  I 
And  if  controlled  in  his  choice,  where  is  his  virtue? 
To  be  capable  of  merit  or  demerit — to  be  the  sub- 
ject of  reward  or  punishment — man  must  be  per- 
fectly free;  he  must  be  the  master  of  his  own  ac- 
tions— -free  to  refuse  the  good,  or  to  choose  the 
evil.  In  the  work  of  his  salvation  he  therefore 
must  freely  determine  for  himself,  and  must  be 
controlled  by  no  superior  power ;  or  he  becomes  a 
mere  machine,  incapable  of  virtue,  unworthy  of 
reward,  and  not  justly  obnoxious  to  punishment. 
Thus  far  the  advocates  for  human  agency  argue 
correctly.  Their  reasonings  are  founded  on  the 
constitution  of  the  human  mind — on  the  immutable 
nature  of  virtue  which  exists  only  in  free  agents 
capable  of  determining  their  own  actions — and  on 
the  nature  of  rewards  and  punishments  which  are 
applicable  only  to  those  who,  impelled  by  no  re- 
sistless impulse,  have  chosen  the  good,  or  pursued 
the  evil.  But  when  the  advocates  of  human  agency 
in  the  work  of  salvation  advance  farther — when 
they  attribute  to  man  that  native  clearness  of  per- 
ception which,  without  any  isuperior  illumination, 


REQUIRING  HUMAN  CO-OPERATION.  225 

discerns  in  every  case  the  nature  and  excellence 
of  divine  truth,  and  the  nice  and  correct  sugges- 
tions of  duty — when  they  attribute  to  man  that 
strength  of  will  which  enables  him,  unassisted  by 
supernatural  aids,  to  subdue  the  corrupt  [)assions 
of  his  heart,  and  to  resist  the  temptations  of  the 
world — they  advance  an  opinion  unscriptural,  irra- 
tional, and  contrary  to  universal  experience.  This 
doctrine,  which  attributes  the  exclusive  agency  to 
man  in  the  work  of  his  salvation,  is  one  of  the  er- 
roneous extremes  on  this  subject.  And  that  it  is 
thus  erroneous  will  appear,  if  we  follow,  as  far  as 
their  legitimate  reasoning  extends,  the  advocates 
of  the  other  extreme — of  the  doctrine  of  the  resist- 
less power  of  divine  grace. 

Is  not  man,  say  the  advocates  of  this  doctrine, 
a  corrupt  being"!  Do  not  the  proofs  of  this  cor- 
ruption appear  in  the  prevalence  of  his  sinful  pro- 
pensities— in  the  ease  and  frequency  with  which 
temptation  seduces  him  into  sin — in  the  long  series 
of  crimes  which  darken  his  history — and  in  all  the 
institutions  of  civil  society  which,  remotely  or  im- 
mediately, are  founded  on  human  imperfection  and 
depravity"?  And  is  it  possible,  say  they,  that  a  de- 
praved creature,  the  very  essence  of  whose  depra- 
vity consists  in  the  ardour  with  which  he  cherishes 
it,  can  rise,  prompted  by  no  superior  impulse,  to 
the  exalted  heights  of  virtue,  or,  unassisted,  main- 
tain his  high  station  1  Is  not  man,  say  they,  a  de- 
pendent being'?  and  if  his  bodily  health  and  his 
temporal  mercies  come  from  an  almighty  hand,  is 
it  not  reasonable  to  conclude  that  his  spiritual 
health  and  his  eternal  mercies  must  boast  of  a  di- 
vine origin "?  If  man  can  work  out  his  salvation 
independently  of  supernatural  aid,  where  is  the 

Vol.  hi.  29 


^26  THE  GRACE  OP  GOD 

humility  of  the  creature  ?  where  the  glory  of  the 
Creator]  Thus  far  the  advocates  of  divine  grace 
reason  correctly.  Their  tenets  are  supported  by 
the  nature  of  man,  by  his  relation  to  his  Creator^ 
and  by  the  characteristic  property  of  the  plan  of 
salvation — its  being  founded  on  grace,  not  on  the 
claims  of  merit.  Thus  far  every  man,  who  has 
experienced  either  the  power  of  his  sinful  passions, 
or  has  made  any  progress  in  subduing  them,  will 
bear  testimony  to  their  doctrine,  and  cherish  it  as 
fruitful  botli  of  virtue  and  consolation.  But  when 
the  advocates  of  this  important  doctrine  of  divine 
grace  push  their  tenets  further ;  when  they  main- 
tain, that  so  totally  impotent  is  man,  that  he  pos- 
sesses, of  himself,  no  power  to  cherish  the  influ- 
ences of  the  Divine  Spirit — so  deeply  depraved, 
that  no  native  impulse  to  goodness  warms  his 
heart;  when  they  maintain  that  the  grace  of  God 
can  never  be  arrested,  nor  finally  quenched — that, 
on  the  contrary,  by  its  irresistable  power  it  infal- 
libly conducts  the  person,  once  the  subject  of  it,  to 
final  glory,  while  those  who,  by  the  decree  of  God, 
are  destitute  of  it,  infallibly  fall  into  perdition — 
they  equally  oppose  Scripture,  common  experi- 
ence, common  sense,  and  all  the  benevolent  feel- 
ings of  the  heart :  they  make  virtue,  as  it  respects 
man,  but  a  name — rewards  and  punishments  arbi- 
trary edicts :  they  transform  man,  who  was  created 
in  the  divine  image,  into  a  fiend  irreversibly  boimd 
by  the  fetters  of  sin  :  they  transform  God,  who,  ia 
his  word,  his  works,  and  his  ways,  proclaims  him- 
self to  be  love,  into  a  being  swayed  by  passions  that 
in  man  would  constitute  an  odious  tyrant. 

In  the  middle  point  between  opposite  opinions, 
the   luminous   path   of  truth  frequently  appears. 


REQUIRING  HUMAN  CO-OPERATION.  227 

Certainly,  in  the  present  case,  according  to  the 
second  view  of  the  subject  which  was  laid  down, 

2.  The  correct  doctrine  embraces  a  portion  of 
both  these  opposite  opinions. 

We  have  seen  that,  to  a  certain  extent,  each  of 
them  has  legitimate  claims  to  truth.  Human  agency 
must  be  so  far  maintained  as  to  preserve  man's 
freedom  and  virtue,  and  to  make  this  virtue  capable 
of  rewards  and  punishments  :  human  agency  must 
,Jbe  so  far  exerted  as  to  prevent  man  from  becoming 
a  machine,  moved  by  the  irresistable  force  of  mo-^ 
lives,  as  effectually  as  a  piece  of  mechanism  is  set 
in  motion  by  a  physical  impetus :  human  agency 
must  be  so  far  maintained  as  to  make  man  guilty 
in  freely  rejecting  proffered  grace,  and  thus  to  re- 
move the  imputation  of  his  destruction  from  the 
God  who  made  him.  On  the  other  hand,  the  agency 
of  divine  grace  must  be  so  far  maintained  as  to 
ascribe  to  this  grace  the  power  in  man  to  think  and 
to  do  whatsoever  is  pleasing  to  God — his  sanctifi- 
cation,  his  progress  in  holiness,  his  conquest  over 
temptation,  and  his  final  exaltation  to  glory.  Less 
than  this  we  cannot  attribute  to  divine  agency, 
when  not  resisted,  leading  man  from  grace  to  grace, 
until  he  arrive  at  the  final  state  of  perfect  holiness, 
without  being  guilty  of  the  impiety  of  making  man 
his  own  saviour,  of  ascribing,  in  man's  salvation, 
that  glory  to  the  creature  which  is  due  only  to  the 
infinite  Creator. 

Human  co-operation  with  divine  grace  is  the 
opinion  which  embraces  whatever  portion  of  truth 
exists  in  the  extremes ;  and  this  is  the  unequivocal 
and  uniform  doctrine  of  the  Bible;  and  which  only 
gives  clearness,  consistency,  and  force  to  its  decla- 


^28  THE  GRACE  OP  GOD 

rations.    Whnt  mean  those  numerous  exhortationB 
to  sinners  : — Wash  you,  make  you  clean  :  put  from 
you  your  evil  doings ;  make  you  a  clean  heart  and 
right  spirit— Cease  to  do  evil ;  learn  to  do  well — 
Bring  forth  fruits  meet  for  repentance — Give  all  di- 
ligence to  make  your  calling  and  election  sure'! 
What  mean  those  cautions  : — See  that  ye  receive 
not  the  grace  of  God  in  vain — Harden  not   your 
hearts— -Quench  not  the  Spirit — Let  him  that  think- 
eth   he  standeth,   take   heed   lest  he  fall  1     What 
means  the  holy  circumspection  of  the  apostle : — I  . 
keep  under  my  body,  and  bring  it  into  subjection, 
lest  that  by  any  means  vi^hen  I  have  preached  to 
others,  I  myself  should   be   a  cast-away  1     What 
mean  the  promises  and  threats,  the  rewards  and 
punishments  which  lie  at  the  basis  of  all  the  divine 
dispensations  1    All  these,  with  the  whole  strain  of 
Scripture,  imply,  beyond  contradiction,  that  human 
agency  must  be  exerted  in  the  work  of  salvation ; 
that  man  is  free  to  reject  the  Spirit  of  God,  or  to 
cherish  his  gracious  influences;  and  that  this  grace 
must  be  cherished,  must  be  improved,  or  it  will 
only  tend  to  his  condemnation ;  and  the  greatest 
saint,  even  after  having  preached  unto  others,  may 
be  a  cast' away. 

On  the  other  hand,  divine  grace  is  necessary  to 
the  sanctification  of  man,  to  his  establishment  in 
holiness,  and  to  his  final  perseverance  in  the  Chris- 
tian life.  To  this  point  how  explicit  are  the  de- 
clarations:  I  will  put  my  Spirit  within  you,  and 
cause  you  to  walk  in  my  statutes — Ye  are  sancti- 
fied by  the  Spirit  of  God — Ye  are  saved  by  the 
washing  of  regeneration  and  the  renewing  of  the 
Holy  Ghost — Not  that  we  are  sufficient  of  our- 
selves to  think  any  thing  as  of  ourselves,  but  our 


REQUIRING  HUMAN  CO-OPERATION.  229 

sufficiency  is  of  God — The  JSpirit  helpeth  our  in- 
firmities— It  is  God  who  giveth  the  increase ! 
Here  the  doctrine  of  divine  grace,  as  the  primary 
agent  in  the  work  of  salvation,  is  plainly  revealed. 
How  then  are  we  to  reconcile  human  agency  and 
divine  grace  1  The  apostle  has  determined  this 
point  in  the  words  of  the  text.  Both  are  to  be  pre- 
served. We  are  to  work  out  our  salvation  ;  for  it 
is  God  that  worketh  in  us.  Our  own  exertions  must 
co-operate  witn  his  grace.  His  Holy  Spirit  en- 
lightens, renews,  sanctifies,  the  heart — gives  us  the 
victory  over  temptation,  leads  us  in  the  way  of  his 
law  and  in  the  works  of  his  commandments.  But 
if  we  resist  and  grieve  his  Holy  Spirit,  we  may 
provoke  him  to  take  it  from  us.  If  we  do  not  work 
out  our  salvation,  God  will  not  effectually  work  in 
us.  The  truth  then  on  this  important  point  is  clear 
—We  can  do  nothing  eff*ectually  but  by  the  pre- 
venting, assisting,  and  sanctifying  grace  of  God  ; 
but,  favoured  as  we  are  by  his  gracious  influences, 
unless  we  make  constant  and  vigorous  exertions 
ourselves,  we  shall  have  received  the  grace  of  God 
in  vain. 

3.  This  doctrine  of  the  co-operation  of  human 
agency  with  divine  grace,  thus  expressly  established 
in  Scripture,  is  perfectly  agreeable  to  reason,  and 
may  be  vindicated  from  all  objections. 

On  the  one  hand,  consciousness  assures  every 
man  that  he  is  a  free  agent;  that  he  may  do  or  not 
do  as  he  pleases ;  that,  in  regard  to  his  volitions 
and  his  actions,  no  irresistable  force  impels  or  con- 
trols him.  This  free  agency  is  essential  to  a  moral 
and  accountable  creature ;  reason,  therefore,  can 
never  relinquish  it;  she  can  never  admit  any  doc- 


230  T(IE  GRACE  OF  GOD 

trine  which,  by  destroying  the  free  agency  of  man, 
would  destroy  the  morality  of  his  actions,  and  his 
accoimtableness  to  the  God  who  made  him.  Nor 
is  she  required  to  relinquish  the  free  agency  of 
man,  by  the  word  of  God ;  for  we  have  seen  that, 
throughout  the  inspired  volume,  God  deals  with 
man  as  a  free  agent ;  as  such,  warns  and  invites 
him,  threatens  and  promises  him  ;  as  such,  places 
before  him  the  good  and  the  evil — choose  ye  which 
ye  will  serve. 

But,  on  the  other  hand,  consciousness  and  expe- 
rience also  impress  on  every  man  the  truth,  that 
his  free  agency  is  impaired — that  his  sinful  pro- 
pensities are  strong — the  temptations  of  the  world 
powerful ;  and  the  work  of  salvation  is  therefore 
eminently  arduous.  What  then  is  the  immediate 
suggestion  of  reason  ]  That  man  needs  superna- 
tural help.  What  is  the  immediate  impulse  of  his 
heart  1  To  fly,  in  this  his  weak  and  helpless  state, 
to  that  Almighty  Being  on  whom  he  is  dependent, 
imploring  his  succour.  There  is  nothing  therefore 
in  the  doctrine,  that  man  in  the  work  of  salvation 
must  be  assisted  by  divine  grace,  which  is  not  per- 
fectly agreeable  to  the  dictates  of  unprejudiced 
reason,  and  to  the  natural  suggestions  of  the  heart. 
To  oppose  this  doctrine,  because  we  are  unable  to 
comprehend  the  mode  by  which  the  Divine  Spirit 
operates  upon  our  minds,  would  be  irrational,  would 
be  contrary  to  the  dictates  of  sound  philosophy. 
How  many  facts  does  the  philosopher  admit,  for 
which  he  is  utterly  unable  to  account !  How  many 
things  there  are  in  the  constant  observation  of 
every  man  which  he  seeks  in  vain  to  comprehend ! 
The  nature  of  his  own  mind,  the  nature  of  the 
bodies  around  him,  the  reasons  why  they  are  thus 


REQUIRING  HUMAN  CO-OPERATION.  231 

constituted,  are  all  inscrutable.  In  temporal  things, 
man's  knowledge  is  confined  solely  to  facts :  the 
moment  he  attempts  to  explain  their  remote  and 
real  causes,  he  becomes  lost — he  feels  his  igno- 
rance, his  weakness.  Is  it  then  wonderful  or  irra- 
tional that  he  should  be  unable  to  comprehend 
spiritual  things  1  Here,  as  in  temporal  matters,  he 
knows  facts:  all  beyond  is  covered  with  impene- 
trable mystery.  The  fact  that  the  Divine  Spirit 
does  operate  upon  our  minds,  is  sufficient  as  a  rule 
of  our  conduct  and  a  source  of  consolation.  The 
mode  by  which  his  operations  take  place  is  incom- 
prehensible, and  certainly,  for  any  practical  pur- 
pose, is  not  necessary  to  be  known. 

But  if  divine  grace  alone  be  efficacious  in  salva- 
tion, what  then  becomes  of  man's  free  agency  t  If 
man  is  by  nature  so  weak  and  corrupt  as  to  be  un- 
able by  his  own  powers  to  resist  temptation,  and 
to  work  out  his  salvation,  how  can  he  be  guilty, 
how  can  he  be  obnoxious  to  punishment'?  We  an- 
swer : — Divine  grace,  so  far  from  destroying  man's 
free  agency,  perfects  it.  Weakened  by  the  fall, 
divine  grace  repairs  it.  God,  by  his  Holy  Spirit, 
suggests  to  us  good  thoughts,  puts  into  our  minds 
good  desires,  applies  to  them  the  most  persuasive 
and  powerful  motives,  gives  us  strength  to  deter- 
mine, to  act ;  but,  when  thus  prompted,  urged, 
strengthened,  the  way  in  which  we  may  act,  and 
the  choice  which  we  may  make,  depend  solely  upon 
ourselves.  We  may  do  "  despite  unto  God's  Spi- 
rit," we  may  "  resist"  it,  we  may  quench  it,  and  thus 
receiving  the  grace  of  God  in  vain,  bring  on  our- 
selves swift  destruction ;  or,  on  the  contrary,  fol- 
lowmg  its  blessed  guidance,  we  may  be  led  into  all 


232  THE  GRACE  OF  GOD 

truth,  sanctified  in  soul  and  body,  and  have  our 
fruit  unto  holiness,  and  the  end  everlasting  life. 

It  is  the  rejection  of  the  grace  that  enables  him 
to  work  out  his  salvation,  which  constitutes  the 
guilt  of  man  and  exposes  him  to  punishment.  No 
absolute  decree,  no  imputation  of  another's  sin, 
can  make  man  guilty,  or  justly  obnoxious  to  eternal 
misery:  guilt  implies  actual,  voluntary  transgres- 
sion, whicii  it  was  in  the  power  of  the  offender  to 
avt)id.  Accordingly  the  Scriptures  declare,  that 
man  is  to  be  judged  only  for  the  "  deeds  done  in 
the  body."  "  This  is  the  condemnation,  that  light 
is  come  into  the  world,  and  men  loved  darkness 
rather  than  light,  because  their  deeds  were  evil."* 

It  is  the  unsearchable  will  of  God  to  make  this 
life  a  state  of  discipline,  in  which  we  are  to  be 
made  perfect  through  suffering;  he  has  therefore 
permitted  the  sin  of  Adam  to  entail  on  his  poste- 
rity a  corrupt  nature,  suffering,  and  death.  But 
coextensive  with  the  effects  of  the  sin  of  the  first 
Adam,  is  the  atonement  of  the  second  Adam,  the 
man  Christ  Jesus,  the  Lord  our  righteousness. 
Through  his  merits  and  grace  all  men,  though  by 
nature  children  of  wrath,  possessing  propensities 
deserving  of  God's  displeasure,  are  put  into  a  state 
of  salvation  in  which  their  future  destiny  depends 
upon  themselves — upon  the  improvement  which 
they  make  of  the  grace  given  to  them.  This  is 
agreeable  to  the  reasoning  of  the  apostle — "  As  in 
Adam  all  die,  even  so  in  Christ  shall  all  be  made 
alive."  Thus  is  the  justice  of  God  cleared  of  every 
imputation.  All  men  are  made  free  by  grace  to 
discern,  and  are  made  free  through  grace  to  per- 
form, the  things  that  are  pleasing  to  God ;  and 

*  St.  John  iii.  X9. 


HEQUIREVG  HUMAN  CO-OPERATION.  233 

according  to  the  proportion  of  light  and  grace 
which  they  have  received  will  they  be  judged :  of 
those  to  whom  much  is  given,  will  much  be  re- 
quired ;  and  of  those  to  whom  little  is  given,  will 
little  be  required.  Thus  is  the  doctrine  of  the  ne- 
cessity of  grace  in  the  work  of  salvation  freed  from 
every  difficulty,  made  perfectly  compatible  with  the 
moral  agency  and  accountableness  of  man,  and 
with  the  attributes  of  that  Judge  of  all  the  earth 
who  haih  declared  that  he  will  do  right,  and  that 
he  is  not  a  hard  Master,  reaping  where  he  has  not 
sown,  and  gathering  where  he  has  not  strawed. 

But  do  we,  by  the  doctrine  of  human  co-opera- 
tion, make  void  divine  grace  ^  God  forbid  !  We 
rather  magnify  the  same.  What  is  the  doctrine  of 
the  church  I  "  Man,  by  his  own  natural  strength, 
cannot  prepare  himself  for  good  works  and  calling 
upon  God ;"  it  is  "  the  grace  of  God  in  Christ  work- 
ing in  him  a  good  will,  and  working  with  him  when 
he  has  a  good  will."  Thus  does  tho  grace  of  God 
begin  the  spiritual  life,  preserve  it  in  every  stage, 
and  finally  bring  it  to  perfection.  Is  not  this  mag- 
nifying the  grace  of  God  I  But  is  this  grace  resist- 
less I  Does  this  grace  do  every  thing  1  No  ;  mark 
the  cautious  expression  of  the  article  of  the  church 
which  has  just  been  quoted  :  the  grace  of  God 
works  with  man  ;  man  works,  but  to  render  his 
working  effectual,  the  grace  of  God  must  co-operate 
with  him.  What  is  this  but  the  doctrine  of  human 
co-operation  with  divine  grace  1  What  is  this  but 
the  language  of  St.  Paul — Work  out  your  salvation, 
for  it  is  God  that  worketh  in  you  1  To  maintain 
that  this  grace  is  irresistable — that  it  is  the  sole 
agent  in  the  work  of  salvation,  would  be  contrary 
to  the  express  tenour  of  Scripture.     So  far  from 

Vol.  III.  30 


234  THE  GRACE  OF  GOD 

magnifying  divine  grace,  it  would  degrade  it,  mak- 
ing it  destructive  to  man's  freedom,  to  his  virtue, 
and  to  all  the  moral  attributes  of  God.  It  is  im- 
pious to  ascribe  to  this  wise  and  just  Being  the  in- 
consistency of  making  man  a  moral  and  accountable 
agent,  and  yet  of  controlling  him  by  an  irresistable 
power.  The  advocates  of  this  doctrine,  and  not  of 
human  co-operation  with  divine  agency,  detract 
from  the  glory  of  God.  It  is  this  latter  doctrine 
only  which  gives  consistency  and  beauty  to  all  the 
divine  dispensations ;  which  displays  the  Deity  in 
the  most  interesting  of  all  possible  characters,  the 
merciful  Ruler  of  moral  and  accountable  creatures, 
the  righteous  Rewarder  of  them  who  diligently 
seek  him. 

We  are  now  prepared  for  the 

4.  Last  view  of  this  subject — The  practical  in- 
fluence of  the  doctrine  of  the  concurrence  of  human 
agency  with  divine  grace  in  the  work  of  salvation. 

Its  practical  influence  is  to  keep  us  from  distrust 
on  the  one  hand,  and  presumption  on  the  other; 
and  to  lead  us  diligently,  earnestly,  and  zealously 
to  work  out  our  salvation.  Were  we  left  entirely 
to  ourselves  in  this  important  concern,  to  the  blind- 
ness of  our  own  reason  and  the  weakness  of  our 
own  resolution,  well  might  we  exclaim — Who  is 
suflicient  for  these  things  1  We  should  sink  in 
hopeless  despondency.  On  the  other  hand,  were 
we  taught  that  the  grace  of  God  is  to  do  all ;  that 
this  grace  is  resistless ;  and  that,  when  it  seizes 
us,  it  will  infallibly  save  us ;  we  should  be  elevated 
to  the  dangerous  extreme  of  presumptuous  secu- 
rity. But  when  we  are  taught  that,  though  God 
works  in  us,  we  are  also  to  work,  while  with  fear 


IIEQUIRTNG  HUMAN  CO-OPERATION.  235 

and  trembling,  considering  our  own  weakness,  and 
the  possibility,  by  neglecting  divine  grace,  of  falling 
short  of  our  salvation — we  are  preserved  from  pre- 
sumption; confiding  in  the  almighty  power  of  Him 
who  works  in  us  according  to  his  good,  his  merci- 
ful and  gracious  pleasure,  we  are  saved  from  dis- 
trust. 

Behold  then,  brethren,  the  highly  momentous 
force  of  the  apostolic  injunction — "  Work  out  your 
own  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling.  For  it  is 
God  which  worketh  in  you  both  to  will  and  to  do 
of  his  good  pleasure."  God  infinite,  eternal,  al- 
mighty— he  is  our  helper :  by  his  power  he  works 
in  us  both  to  will  and  to  do.  But  we  hold  this 
grace,  without  which  we  can  do  notiiing,  at  the 
good  pleasure  of  his  will :  he  has  declared,  that  if 
we  resist  his  grace,  and  do  despite  unto  his  Spirit, 
he  will  take  it  from  us ;  that,  if  we  hear  not  his 
voice,  but  harden  om*  hearts,  he  will  swear  in  his 
wrath  that  we  shall  not  enter  into  his  rest.  Let  us 
then,  with  "  fear  and  trembling"  lest  we  forfeit  his 
grace,  "  work  out  our  salvation  ;"  let  us  "  give  all 
diligence  to  make  our  calling  and  election  sure;" 
faithfully  using  all  the  means  of  grace — the  wor- 
ship and  ordinances  of  the  sanctuary,  frequent  and 
humble  prayer :  let  us  daily,  hourly,  constantly 
strive  to  deny  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts,  to 
mortify  our  evil  tempers,  to  subdue  our  sinful 
habits,  and  to  live  soberly,  righteously,  and  godly, 
in  this  present  world ;  to  keep  a  conscience  void 
of  offence  towards  God  and  towards  man ;  to  grow 
in  grace,  and  in  the  knowledge  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ.  At  the  same  time  let  us 
remember,  that  we  are  enabled  thus  diligently  to 
work  out  our  salvation  only  by  the  preventing  and 


236-  THE  GRACE  OF  GOD,  &e. 

quickening  grace  of  God ;  and  that  the  pardon  of 
our  sins  and  the  glories  of  heaven — blessings  to 
which  by  nature  we  can  lay  no  title — are  the  free 
gifts  of  his  mercy,  through  Jesus  Christ.  Let  us 
then,  when  we  have  done  all,  acknowledge  that  we 
are  unprofitable  servants — "  Not  unto  us,  O  Lord, 
not  unto  us,  but  unto  thy  name  give  glory."  "  Work 
out  your  own  salvation  with  fear  and  trembling. 
For  it  is  God  which  worketh  in  you  both  to  will 
and  to  do  of  his  good  pleasure."  And  that  God 
would  thus  work  in  us,  and  enable  us  to  work,  let 
us  beseech  him  in  the  language  of  the  church : — 
"  Grant  to  us.  Lord,  we  beseech  thee,  the  spirit  to 
think  and  do  always  such  things  as  are  right ;  that 
we,  who  cannot  do  any  thing  that  is  good  without 
thee,  may  by  thee  be  enabled  to  live  according  to 
thy  will,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord."  "  Lord, 
we  pray  thee,  that  thy  grace  may  always  prevent 
and  follow  us;  and  make  us  continually  to  be  given 
to  all  good  works,  through  Jesus  Christ  our  Lord." 


SERMON   XX. 


SELF-COMMUNION. 


Psalm  Ixxvii.  6. 
I  commune  with  mine  own  lieart,  and  search  out  my  spirit. 

The  active  spirit  of  man  will  always  be  em- 
ployed ;  the  exercise  of  thought  and  reflection  is 
inseparable  from  the  human  mind  ;  and  therefore 
there  is  no  man  who  does  not,  in  a  greater  or  less 
degree,  commune  with  his  own  heart,  and  search 
out  his  spirit.  The  objects  indeed  on  which  this 
meditation  may  be  exercised  are  various.  In  the 
choice  of  them  also,  men  are  unhappily  directed, 
not  by  the  sober  voice  of  considerate  reason,  not 
by  the  divine  guidance  of  religion,  but  by  the  ca- 
prices of  a  wayward  fancy,  and  by  the  powerful 
suggestions  of  corrupt  passion.  The  thoughts  of 
their  minds,  that  should  aspire  after  spiritual  and 
immortal  truths  and  blessings,  are  therefore  prin- 
cipally confined  to  the  degrading  and  short-lived 
objects  of  time  and  sense. 

And  yet,  brethren,  on  this  communion  with  our 
heart  depend  the  perfection  or  the  degradation  of 
our  nature  in  the  present  life,  and  our  eternal  hap- 
piness or  misery  in  the  life  which  is  to  come.  If 
our  thoughts  are  occupied  solely  or  principnily  with 
the  plans  of  sensual  gratification  ;  if  we.ilth,  ho- 
nour, and  pleasure  alone  enirross  our  nffections  ;  if 
Svorldly  pursuits  and  enjoyments  be  thus  the  objects 


238  SELF-COMMUNION. 

of  our  supreme  attention,  our  souls  will  be  degraded 
from  their  true  perfection  and  happiness  in  the  pre- 
sent life,  and  totally  disqualified  for  the  pure  and 
spiritual  joys  of  the  kingdom  of  heaven.  Not  in 
this  sensual,  degrading,  and  corrupting  communion 
with  the  heart  did  the  psalmist  indulge  :  it  was  that 
holy  meditation  which  was  calculated  to  advance 
the  dignity,  the  purity,  and  the  perfection  of  the 
soul,  and  to  qualify  it  for  immortal  joys — "  He 
communed  with  his  own  heart." 

Let  us  then  consider  the  duty  of  communion  with 
our  hearts,  in  reference, 

.1.  To  the  subjects  on  which  it  should  be  exer- 
cised ;  and, 

2.  To  the  motives  which  should  lead  to  it. 

1.  We  should  commune  with  our  own  hearts, 
and  search  out  our  spirits,  with  regard  to  our  spi- 
ritual character  and  destiny. 

What  are  we  l  and  for  what  are  we  designed  % 
These  are  surely  the  first  and  the  most  important 
subjects  that  should  engross  our  thoughts,  and 
which  should  awaken  our  earnest  and  supreme 
solicitude.  Are  we  the  mere  creatures  of  sense, 
made  to  obey  only  the  mandates  of  the  passions'? 
Do  we  hold  no  higher  rank  in  the  scale  of  being 
than  the  brutes,  which,  prompted  only  by  appetite, 
and  guided  only  by  instinct,  pursue,  with  undeviat- 
ing  course,  sensual  gratifications "?  Are  our  views 
designed  to  be  confined  solely  to  this  transitory 
and  corrupting  world,  in  which  those  numerous 
paths  which  seem  to  invite  to  the  bowers  of  plea- 
sure, all  terminate  in  the  dreary  waste  of  disap- 
pointment and  vanity  X  Is  the  bright  sun  of  our 
being  to  light  up  only  a  few  short  and  clouded 


SELF-COMMUNION.  239 

years,  and  then  to  sink  for  ever  in  the  darkness  of 
eternal  night  1  Is  the  arm  of  death,  which  no  power 
can  arrest,  no  art  elude,  to  wither  the  powers  of  our 
nature  and  extinguish  all  our  joys?  No,  surely. 
Reason,  consciousness,  the  voice  of  God  speaking 
to  us  in  his  holy  word,  assure  us  that  we  possess  a 
nature  far  exalted  above  the  brutes  that  surround 
us ;  that  the  spiritual  agent  which  stirs  within  us, 
is  sprung  from  a  divine  source — from  that  infinite, 
spiritual,  eternal,  perfect  Being,  who  formed  us 
after  his  own  image  ;  that  we  are  distinguished  by 
high  and  vigorous  powers  of  intellect,  not  to  be 
bounded  by  the  narrow  limits  of  corporeal  exist- 
ence, but  to  range  through  the  infinite  world  of 
intelligences,  and  to  ascend  from  the  gross  and 
sensual  objects  around  us,  to  the  contemplation  of 
spiritual  and  immortal  objects — to  reach  even  the 
eternal  Fountain  of  truth  and  felicity,  and  in  the 
adoration  and  love  of  the  greatest  and  best  of 
Beings,  to  find  all  its  powers  perfected,  all  its 
affections  gratified,  all  its  hopes  realized.  Yes ; 
reason,  conscience,  the  word  of  God,  teach  that 
this  life  is  but  the  commencement  of  our  existence, 
the  present  world  but  the  threshold  of  our  being ; 
and  that,  when  translated  from  this  transitory  life 
and  this  perishing  world,  we  shall  be  ushered  into 
a  perfect  and  endless  existence,  and  into  that  ce- 
lestial world  which,  through  the  revolution  of  ages, 
shall  know  no  period.  Reason,  consciousness,  the 
word  of  God  assure  us,  that  we  were  made  for  the 
knowledge  and  service  of  our  Almighty  Maker — 
for  the  fulness  of  felicity  in  his  holy  presence. 

Let  us  then  hold  frequent  communion  with  our 
hearts,  brethren,  on  our  high  rank  in  the  scale  of 


240  SELF-COMMUNION. 

being,  on  the  exalted  destiny  which  the  Almighty 
has  assigned  us. 

Yet,  alas!  in  communing  with  our  hearts  con- 
cerning our  spiritual  character  and  state,  truths 
humiliating  and  painful  will  force  themselves  upon 
us.  Formed  originally  with  powers  which  both 
fitted  and  prompted  us  to  aspire  after  the  know- 
ledge and  enjoyment  of  the  infinite  Fountain  of 
truth,  goodness,  and  felicity,  the  view  of  our  pre- 
sent character  and  condition  will  force  us  to  ex- 
claim— "  How  is  the  gold  become  dim  !  how  is  the 
fine  ffold  become  chanoed  !  The  crown  is  fallen 
from  our  heads — Wo  unto  us,  for  we  have  sinned !" 
Our  nature  degraded  and  corrupted  by  transgres- 
sion, we  are  obnoxious  to  the  displeasure  of  Him 
who  is  great  in  power  and  inflexible  in  justice,  and 
who  will  not  spare  the  guilty.  There  is  "  a  law  in 
our  members  warring  against  the  law  of  our  mind, 
and  bringing  us  into  captivity  to  the  law  of  sin." 
"  When  we  would  do  good,  evil  is  present  with 
us."  Conscience  bears  her  testimony,  that,  in  dis- 
obeying the  dictates  of  reason,  we  have  violated 
the  righteous  laws  of  Him  who  made,  and  rules, 
and  is  to  judge  us.  Serious  and  faithful  commu- 
nion with  our  hearts  will  force  on  us  the  lament- 
able truth,  that  we  are  sinners^  undeserving  of  the 
favour  of  our  God,  and  obnoxious  to  his  displea- 
sure. "  Wretched  men  that  we  are,  who  shall  de- 
liver us  from  the  body  of  this  death  1" 

Thus,  then,  we  should  commune  with  our  hearts, 

2.  Concerning  the  means  of  release  from  the 
bondage  of  sin,  and  of  securing  our  spiritual  per- 
fection and  happiness. 


SELF-COMMUNION.  241 

Can  we  find  these  means  in  the  icorld — in  the 
lights  and  efforts  of  unassisted  reason  ? 

Can  we  find  the  means  of  securing  our  spiritual 
perfection  and  happiness  in  the  'world  ?  The  world 
is  the  enemy  of  our  spiritual  and  immortal  hopes ; 
the  world  is  the  enemy  whose  temptations  we  are 
to  shun  with  the  greatest  solicitude,  whose  allure- 
ments we  are  to  resist  with  the  most  sacred  reso- 
lution: for  inspiration  hath  pronounced — "  The 
friendship  of  the  world  is  enmity  with  God."  With 
the  world,  indeed,  we  must  in  some  measure  be 
occupied;  to  its  numerous  duties  we  must  be  se- 
dulously attentive ;  of  its  innocent  pleasures  we 
may  occasionally  and  with  moderation  partake. 
But  if  we  give  up  to  the  world  the  whole  of  our 
affections  and  of  our  time ;  if  we  expect,  by  the 
devoted  pursuit  of  its  treasures  and  honours,  and 
by  the  eager  indulgence  of  its  pleasures,  to  advance 
our  true  perfection  and  happiness,  how  great  will 
be  our  disappointment!  how  deplorable  our  mis- 
take ! 

Commune  then  with  your  own  hearts  concerning 
the  world ;  consult  your  own  experience,  appeal  to 
your  experience,  and  see  how  vain  are  all  its  allure- 
ments, how  uncertain  all  its  plans,  how  unsatisfying 
all  its  joys,  and  how  dangerous  and  corrupting  its 
temptations.  Idle  and  delusive,  then,  the  expecta- 
tion to  advance  our  spiritual  perfection  and  happi- 
ness by  devotion  to  a  world  which  lieth  in  wicked- 
ness, whose  flattering  prospects  terminate  in  dis- 
appointment, and  which  is  to  be  consumed  by  the 
fires  of  the  last  day. 

Can  we  advance  and  secure  our  spiritual  perfec- 
tion and  happiness  by  the  unassisted  lights  and 
efforts  of  reason  ? 

Vol.  III.  81 


242  SELP-COMMUNIOW. 

But  what  does  unassisted  reason  teacb  us?  Does 
it  yield   certain   information   concerning   any   one 
topic  interesting  to  our  perfection  and  happiness] 
Does  it  disperse  the  darkness  which  surrounds  the 
existence  and  character  of  the  invisible  first  cause  ? 
Does  it  allay  the  apprehensions  which  transgres- 
sion, alarming  and  rousing  the  conscience,  excites? 
Does  it  open  to  the  trembling  spirit  the  bosom  of 
mercy,  on  which  it  may  in  safety  repose  1     Does  it 
dispel  the  anxious  doubts  which  agitate  the  soul 
when  she  approaches  the  confines  of  time,  and  with 
eager,  but  with  vain  desire,  seeks  to  explore  the 
unknown  region  of  eternity?     Ah!  here  it  is  that 
human  reason,  when  we  most  need  her  consoling 
support,  leaves  us  to  cruel  uncertainty  and  doubt. 
Commune,  then,  brethren,  with  your  own  hearts  ; 
call  in  the  wisdom  of  the  sages  of  the  world,  and 
see  how  little  light,  how  little  satisfaction  reason 
can  afford  you  in  the  interesting  concerns  of  your 
spiritual  perfection  and  happiness. 

Baffled  in  our  appeal  to  the  world,  to  the  light 
and  strength  of  unassisted  reason,  we  have  but  one 
resource' — the  Gospel  of  Christ. 

The  exalted  truths  which  it  reveals  aflford  the 
only  certain  means  of  advancing  and  securing  our 
everlasting  perfection  and  happiness.  How  bright 
the  lustre  which  the  Gospel  sheds  on  the  character 
and  attributes  of  the  Almighty  Being  whom  we  are 
to  serve,  and  by  whom  we  are  to  be  judged  !  How 
rich  the  provision  which  it  makes,  in  the  grace  and 
mercy  of  a  Saviour,  for  our  recovery  from  our  low 
estate  of  guilt  and  misery  !  How  luminous  the  path 
which  conducts  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of 
death  to  immortal  glory!  The  treasures  which  the 
ijospel  unfolds,  while  they  enrich  and  gladden  the 


SELF-COMMUNION*  243 

heart,  can  never  be  corroded  by  care  and  disap- 
pointment— can  never  be  wrested  from  us  by  death, 
the  destroyer  of  all  earthly  treasures.  On  the  un- 
searchable riches  of  the  Gospel  commune  seriously 
and  earnestly  with  your  own  hearts,  and  you  will 
j6nd  at  length  the  pearl  of  great  price — that  ex- 
alted happiness  which  will  gratify  your  most  ardent 
desires,  which  will  prove  worthy  of  your  most  noble 
powers,  which  will  be  your  companion  throughout 
the  ages  of  eternity. 

In  the  Gospel  of  Christ,  then,  you  find  the  only 
eertain  means  of  securing  your  spiritual  perfection 
and  happiness.     Commune  tlien, 

Lasthj,  with  your  hearts,  and  inquire  concerning 
the  progress  which  you  have  made  towards  the 
attainment  of  these  infinitely  important  objects. 

Jesus  Christ  is  offered  to  us  in  the  Gospel,  as 
our  all-sufficient  Saviour.  That  mercy  which  allays 
the  pangs  of  guilt,  and  diffuses  through  the  heart 
the  holy  peace  of  God — that  grace  which  will  be 
made  perfect  in  our  weakness,  which  will  enable 
us  to  triumph  over  all  the  enemies  of  our  salvation 
— that  fulness  of  bliss  eternal  in  the  heavens,  sur- 
passing at  once  our  conceptions  and  our  desires — 
he  offers  us,  as  the  free  gift  of  his.  infinite  love. 
Our  complete  and  final  title  to  them  he  rests  on 
our  sincere  repentance  for  our  sins — on  our  lively 
faith  in  his  power,  mercy,  and  grace — on  our  stead- 
fast obedience  to  his  laws,  and  submission  to  his 
ordinances,  as  our  rightful  Sovereign  and  Lord. 
Are  we  desirous  to  fulfil  the  conditions  on  which 
he  suspends  these  infinitely  exalted  blessings'?  Are 
we,  through  his  grace,  continually  advancing  to- 
wards the  fulfilment  of  those  conditions? 


244  self-communion; 

Let  these  be  tke  infinitely  important  topics  on 
which,  in  the  hours  of  sacred  retirement,  you  com- 
mune with  your  hearts.  If  the  result  of  the  solemn 
inquiry  should  be,  that  you  are  indifferent  to  those 
means  of  securing  your  spiritual  perfection  and 
happiness  which  Jesus  Christ  has  provided  in  his 
Gospel ;  if  it  should  appear,  that,  while  he  offers 
you  the  inestimable  blessings  of  his  mercy,  you 
continue  insensible  of  their  value  and  of  your  need 
of  them,  regardless  of  his  ordinances  and  laws ; 
determine,  without  delay,  no  longer  to  contemn 
that  Gospel  which  is  the  power  of  God  unto  salva- 
tion— no  longer  to  cast  from  you  the  immortal 
glories  which  a  divine  Redeemer  offers  you.  Con- 
secrate the  moments  of  retirement  to  your  eternal 
interests,  to  your  souls,  to  God  your  Saviour,  and 
implore  his  pardon,  his  intercession,  his  renewing 
and  sanctifying  grace. 

If,  on  the  contrary,  the  result  of  this  sacred  com- 
munion should  be,  that  in  the  humble  exercise  of 
penitence  and  faith  you  have  devoted  yourselves  to 
your  Saviour,  and  sought  his  mercy  and  grace  in 
the  ordinances  of  his  church,  resolve  to  adhere, 
with  a  stronger  faith  and  more  ardent  devotion, 
to  him,  who  alone  is  able  to  keep  you  from  falling, 
and  to  present  you  faultless  before  the  presence  of 
your  God. 

You  have  now  seen,  brethren,  the  subjects  on 
which  this  sacred  communion  with  the  heart  should 
be  exercised — on  our  spiritual  character  and  des- 
tiny— on  the  means  of  attaining  our  spiritual  per- 
fection and  happiness — on  the  progress  which  we 
have  made  in  securing  these  infinitely  important 
objects. 


SELF-COMMUNION.  245 

Let  us  consider  the  motives  that  should  urge  us 
thus  to  commune  with  our  hearts* 

It  is  an  honourable  employment. 

What  is  it  which  in  the  world  affixes  reputation 
to  character?  Is  it  not  thoughtfulness,  considera- 
tion, prudence,  and  caution  in  the  managenient  of 
worldly  business,  and  in  the  various  pursuits  of 
lifet  This  thoughtfulness,  this  consideration,  so 
honourable  to  you  in  the  world,  we  call  on  you 
now  to  exercise  on  objects  infinitely  more  impor- 
tant, and  which  of  themselves  will  stamp  dignity 
on  all  the  means  employed  to  obtain  them.  To 
pass  through  the  world  totally  regardless  of  those 
pursuits  and  duties  which  are  necessary  to  our 
welfare  and  prosperity  in  it,  would  be  justly  deemed 
folly  and  madness.  What  shall  we  say  of  those 
who  pass  through  the  world  entirely  indifferent  to 
their  spiritual  character,  heedless  of  those  immortal 
interests,  in  comparison  with  which  all  temporal 
concerns  are  but  as  dust  in  the  balance"?  What 
shall  we  say  of  him  who  never  retires  from  the 
busy  scenes  and  gay  pleasures  that  surround  him, 
to  commune  with  his  heart  concerning  his  spiritual 
and  immortal  interests,  the  means  of  securing  the 
favour  of  that  Almighty  Judge,  at  whose  tribunal 
he  is  to  receive  his  everlasting  doom  \ 

Brethren,  this  sacred  communion  with  the  heart 
is  essentially  necessary. 

It  is  necessary  to  the  sinner — to  him  who  is 
living  in  a  state  of  impenitence  and  forgetfulncss 
of  God. 

Alas!  if  he  never  stops  for  a  moment  in  the 
career  of  transgression  ;  if  he  never  for  a  moment 
pauses,  and  permits  conscience  to  raise  her  re- 
monstrances at  his  sinful  course ;  if  he  never  gives 


246'  SELF-COMMUNION. 

himself  time  seriously  to  reflect  that  there  is  a  God, 
a  judgment,  an  eternal  existence — obduracy  will 
soon  seal  his  heart;  given  up  to  a  reprobate  mind, 
God  will  not  be  in  all  his  thoughts.  Arouse,  then, 
sinner;  reflect  on  the  guilt  and  danger  of  thy  im- 
penitent course :  seek  tliy  God  while  he  may  be 
found,  call  upon  liim  wiiite  he  is  near. 

This  sacred  comnuniion  with  the  heart  is  also 
necessary  to  the  smoere  Christian. 

It  is  necessary  to  his  perfection  in  the  Christian 
graces,  and  to  his  enjoyment  of  the  Christian 
hopes. 

In  proportion  as  you  retire.  Christians,  from  the 
bustle  and  gayety  of  the  world,  to  commune  with 
your  own  hearts,  to  hold  converse  with  your  God, 
to  meditate  on  the  mercy  and  love  of  your  Saviour, 
on  the  riches  of  the  eternal  inheritance  which  he 
has  provided  for  you,  will  be  your  progress  in  piety 
and  virtue,  and  your  consolation  and  joy  in  your 
holy  course.  Blessed  is  the  privilege  of  meditat- 
ing on  heaven  and  heavenly  things  !  Happy  above 
the  happiest  moments  which  you  can  find  in  the 
world,  are  those  which  are  devoted  to  your  God, 
to  communion  with  him,  to  the  anticipation  of  the 
bliss  prepared  for  you  in  his  presence.  In  these 
devout  exercises  you  will  find  a  solace  for  all  your 
cares,  a  healing  balm  for  your  wounded  spirit.  In 
sacred  communion  with  your  hearts,  you  will  ex- 
perience that  God  is  gracious;  that  blessed  are  all 
they  that  trust  in  him  ;  that  you  are  strengthened 
against  temptation  ;  that  you  are  raised  above  the 
imperfect  joys  of  the  world,  and  prepared  for  that 
heaven  where  there  is  fiilness  of  joy,  and  where 
there  is  pleasure  for  evermore. 


SERMON   XXL 


CONSIDERATION  OF  TEMPORAL  AND  SPIRITUAL  DUTIES. 


Romans  xii.  11. 
Not  slothful  in  business;  fervent  in  spirit ;  serving  the  Lord. 

Thkse  words  are  an  admirable  summary  of  the 
duty  of  a  Christian  ;  they  are  an  appropriate  and 
forcible  exhibition  of  his  external  conduct  as  it 
regards  the  world,  of  the  temper  of  mind  which  he 
should  cultivate  towards  God,  and  of  the  gYea.t  end 
at  whi(*h  he  should  aim  in  all  his  actions,  and  the 
principle  by  which  he  should  regulate  all  his  dispo- 
sitions and  affections.  As  it  respects  the  world, 
he  is  enjoined  "  not  to  be  slothful  in  business ;"  as 
it  respects  his  piety  to  God,  he  is  to  be  "  fervent  in 
spirit ;"  and  the  great  end  at  which  he  should  aim 
in  all  his  actions,  and  the  principle  by  which  he 
should  reoTtlate  all  his  dispositions  and  affections, 
is  "  serving  the  Lord  "  He  is  not  permitted  to 
extenuate  or  excuse  his  indolence  or  negligence  in 
the  concerns  of  the  world,  by  the  plea  of  being 
engrossed  by  the  fervour  of  his  religious  feelings. 
He  is  not  to  excuse  his  lukevvarmness  in  the  exer- 
cises and  duties  of  religion,  by  the  care  and  dili- 
gence which  his  worldly  affairs  demand.  Nor  is 
he  to  defend  either  that  excessive  devotedness  and 
diligence  in  the  concerns  of  the  world,  which  lead 
him  to  neglect  the  duties  of  a  fervent  piety,  or 
that  immoderate  fervour  of  religious  feeling  which 


248  CONSIDERATION  OF  TEMPORAL 

prompts  him  to  neglect  or  contemn  his  worldly 
business,  by  the  pretext  that  God  is  to  be  served 
solely  by  worldly  industry  on  the  one  hand,  or  re- 
ligious fervour  on  the  other.  No ;  according  to 
the  injunction  of  the  apostle,  these  duties  are  all 
of  indispensable  obligation,  and  all  strictly  com- 
patible; and  they  have  an  important  influence  upon 
each  other — "  Not  slothful  in  business  ;  fervent  in 
spirit;  sorving  the  Lord." 

Let  these  then  be  the  divisions  of  our  discourse: 

1.  These  duties  are  all  binding  upon  us. 

2.  They  are  strictly  compatible  with  each  other. 

3.  And  they  have  a  mutual  and  important  in- 
fluence. 

1.  These  duties  are  all  binding  upon  us* 

"  Not  slothful  in  business." 

The  universe  is  full  of  motion  ;  countless  worlds 
incessantly  rolling  through  immeasurable  space, 
proclaim  that  activity  is  the  first  law  of  nature. 
The  great  Creator  himself  is  unceasingly  occupied 
in  superintending  that  universe  whicli  his  power 
called  into  existence,  and  in  diffusing  through  its 
almost  infinitely  distant  parts,  life,  and  glory,  and 
felicity  :  his  eternal  perfections  lead  to  incessant 
and  ineffably  exalted  activity. 

That  blessed  personage  who,  the  brightness  of 
the  Father's  glory,  went  through  a  series  of  the 
most  active  and  painful  labours  for  the  salvation  of 
the  human  race,  is  still  incessantly  engaged,  at  the 
right  hand  of  the  Father,  in  pouring  forth  interces- 
sions for  those  for  whom  he  shed  his  blood,  in  dis- 
pensing his  truth  and  his  grace  to  guide  and  defend 
his  redeemed  people. 

Angels  and  archangels,  cherubim  and  seraphim, 


AND  SPIKITUAL  DUTIES.  249 

the  most  perfect  and  the  most  blessed  of  the  nu- 
merous ranks  of  created  beings,  find  their  felicity 
in  unceasing  activity — in  doing  the  pleasure  of  Him 
whose  throne  they  surround,  whose  glorious  praises 
they  cease  not  day  nor  night  to  celebrate. 

Even  those  lower  ranks  of  beings  who  are  des- 
titute of  the  active  principle  of  intelligence,  are 
urged  by  that  instinct  with  wliich  Almighty  Power 
hath  endued  them,  to  industry  and  labour — indus- 
try and  labour  often  even  more  than  necessary  to 
their  preservation  and  comfort. 

Shall  then  the  universe,  through  its  boundless 
range — shall  the  Creator  of  the  universe,  the  eter- 
nal Fountain  of  being  and  felicity — shall  the  Re- 
deemer of  the  world,  God  over  all,  blessed  for  ever- 
more—shall  the  host  of  heaven,  foremost  among 
intelligent  creatures — shall  they  who,  guided  only 
by  instinct,  rank  lowest  in  the  scale  of  animate 
creation — shall  all  these  be  active  and  industrious, 
and  in  that  activity  find  their  perfection  and  bliss ; 
and  shall  man  be  sluggish  and  indolent,  man  who, 
made  but  a  little  lower  than  the  angels,  ought  most 
to  resemble  them  in  vigour  and  activity ?  No;  the 
powers  of  the  human  mind,  so  vigorous  and  inqui- 
sitive, prove  that  man  was  designed  for  action,  for 
labour,  for  industry.  By  exercise  only  can  hi.s  in- 
tellectual powers  be  preserved  from  decay,  and  be 
advanced  in  strength  and  purity.  By  useful  employ- 
ment only  can  that  vacuity  of  mind  be  prevented 
which  is  the  bane  of  real  enjoyment,  and  in  wliich, 
as  a  hot-bed,  shoot  up  the  rankest  vices.  Bv  in- 
dustrious application  of  his  body  and  mind  only 
can  he  provide  for  the  comfort  and  welfare  of  those 
whom  nature  hath  made  dependent  on  him,  and 
discharge  his  duty  to  society,  which,  extending  to 

Vol.  hi.  32 


250  CONSIDERATION  OF  TE3IPORAL 

him  protection  and  support,  demands  from  him 
that  exertion  which  is  necessary  to  preserve  and 
advance  the  strength  and  the  purity  of  its  institu- 
tions. 

Thus  then  do  the  most  powerful  considerations 
enforce  the  obligation  of  the  duty  "  not  to  be  sloth- 
ful in  business." 

To  the  injunction,  "  not  slothful  in  business," 
the  apostle  joins  "  fervent  in  spirit." 

By  this  is  meant  spiritual  fervour,  temporal  zeal 
being  already  sufficiently  enjoined  in  the  prior  com- 
mand, "  not  to  be  slothful  in  business." 

There  is  not  a  consideration  which  has  been 
urged  to  establish  the  obligation  of  diligence  in 
our  temporal,  which  does  not  apply,  with  increased 
force,  to  prove  the  duty  of  zeal  and  fervour  in  our 
spiritual  concerns.  Eternity,  in  its  duration,  its 
occupations,  and  its  enjoyments,  infinitely  tran- 
scends the  duration,  occupations,  and  enjoyments 
of  time.  A  spiritual  and  immortal  life  infinitely 
exceeds  in  value  a  life  corporeal  and  mortal.  The 
eternal  Fountain  of  being,  perfection,  and  happi- 
ness, is  infinitely  exalted  above  any  object  which 
can  here  occupy  our  labours  or  claim  our  exertions. 
If  then  temporal  zeal  be  incumbent  on  us,  how 
great  must  be  the  obligations  of  fervour  with 
respect  to  those  spiritual  objects  which  are  of 
infinitely  transcendent  importance ! 

But  the  pious  fervour  which  is  thus  of  indis- 
pensable obligation,  is  not  that  extravagant  fervour 
which,  consisting  in  inflamed  passions,  prostrates 
the  reason  and  the  judgment;  which,  following 
the  impulses  of  a  heated  imagination,  violates,  in 
its  religious  exercises,  what  in  all  cases  ought  to 
be  observed,  the  dictates  of  common  sense,  and 


AND  SPIRITUAL  DUTIES.  251 

ihe  rules  of  propriety  and  order ;  and  which  ap- 
proaches the  great  and  glorious  Being,  before 
whom  cherubim  and  seraphim  fail  prostrate,  with 
presumptuous  and  irreverent  boldness  and  familia- 
rity. The  fervour  in  spirit  here  enjoined,  is  that 
lively  and  sincere  love  to  God,  as  the  greatest  and 
the  best  of  beings,  and  that  earnest,  persevering 
zeal  in  his  service,  in  the  discharge  of  every  reli- 
gious, moral,  and  social  duty,  which  is  chastened 
and  regulated  by  sober  judgment  and  prudence, 
by  a  regard  to  order  and  decency,  by  profound 
reverence  and  awe  of  God's  holy  name :  and  our 
reason  immediately  acknowledges  that  a  Being 
infinitely  great,  glorious,  and  good,  our  Creator, 
Benefactor,  and  Redeemer,  infinitely  merciful  and 
gracious — who,  in  his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  has  pro- 
vided for  us  pardon,  and  grace,  and  everlasting 
life — demands  the  liveliest  and  most  fervent  ho- 
mage and  devotion  of  our  hearts. 

Who  would  not  tJiink  it  dishonourable  to  con- 
template human  excellence  with  indifference — to 
receive  the  favours  of  an  earthly  benefactor  with 
cold  ingratitude — to  be  unmoved  when  exalted 
human  virtue  displays  its  exciting  and  attractive 
lustre  1  How  fervent  and  animated,  then,  should 
he  the  feelings  with  which  we  contemplate  the 
perfections,  celebrate  the  praises,  and  recount  the 
loving-kindness  of  that  infinitely  exalted  and  be- 
neficent Being,  before  whose  perfections  human 
excellence  fades  away,  and  whose  goodness  and 
mercy  provide  for  us  all  the  enjoyments  of  time, 
and  all  the  blissful  hopes  of  eternity  !  Be  ye  then 
''  fervent  in  spirit." 

"  Serving  the  Lord." 

His  service  indeed  should  be  the  end  and  aim  of 


252  CONSIDERATION  OF  TEMPORAL 

all  our  actions,  and  should  regulate  all  the  affec- 
tions of  our  souls;  and  ought  not  an  intelligent 
creature  to  serve  the  all-glorious  God  who  made 
him,  and  who,  at  his  pleasure,  can  recall  the  being 
which   he   gavel     Ought  not  a  sinful   and  guilty 
creature  to  serve  that  Sovereign  Judge  whom  he 
hath  offended,  and  at  whose  tribunal   his  eternal 
doom  must  be  pronounced'?     Ought  not  the  peni- 
tent to  serve  that  merciful  God  who  hath  forgiven 
him  all  his  sins,  and  blotted  out  all  his  iniquities'? 
And  ought  not  the  Christian  to  serve  that  merciful 
Lord   who   hath   redeemed    him   by  the   blood   of 
his  Son,  sanctified  him  by  the  grace  of  his  Holy 
Spirit,  and  prepared  for  him  an  eternal  weight  of 
glory  l    The  relations  which  we  sustain  to  God  our 
Creator,  Benefactor,  Redeemer,  all  demand  from 
us,  that,  as  creatures  made,  preserved,  blessed  by 
him — as  sinners  pardoned  and   comforted  by  his 
mercy  and  grace  in  Jesus  Christ — as  Christians, 
who  are  here  the  subjects  of  his  infinite  love,  and 
who  are  destined  for  the  full  and  endless  joys  of 
his  presence  hereafter — we  should  make  his  ser- 
vice the  supreme  end  and  aim  of  all  our  thoughts, 
words,  and  actions.     To  present  ourselves  to  him 
a  holy  sacrifice ;  to   glorify  him  with  our  bodies 
and  spirits,  that  are  his ;  to  walk  in  all  his  com- 
mandments and  ordinances  blameless;  whatsoever 
we  do,  to  do  all  to  his  glory,  from  a  regard  to  his 
authority,  from  a  sense  of  our  accountableness  to 
him,  and  from  a  desire  to  please  him,  and  to  pro- 
mote his  honour  and  glory  among  men — this  is 
rendering  to  him  that  service  which  his  own  exalted 
nature  and  the  relations  which  he  sustains  to  us 
demand. 


AND  SPIRITUAL  DUTIES.  253 

*'  Not  slothful  in  business ;  fervent  in  spirit ;  serv- 
ing the  Lord." 

2.  These  duties  are  strictly  compatible,  and  no 
way  interfering  with  each  other  in  the  due  dis- 
charge of  them. 

Diligence  in  our  lawful  concerns  need  not  pre- 
vent the  exercise  of  our  pious  aftections,  and  the 
regular  discharge  of  those  duties  of  prayer  and 
praise  which  we  owe  to  the  infinitely  great  and 
glorious  Being  who  made,  sustains,  and  has  re- 
deemed us.  The  affections  of  the  soul  may  be 
fixed  upon  God,  and  his  perfections  and  mercies 
may  excite  our  pious  love  and  gratitude,  even  when 
we  are  engaged  in  the  ordinary  occupations  of  life. 
Our  hearts  may  glow  with  the  fervours  of  piety — 
may  send  up  the  secret  ejaculations  of  prayer  and 
praise  to  the  God  of  all  goodness  and  mercy,  our 
strength  and  our  Redeemer — even  when  we  are 
moving  in  the  circles  of  business,  or  enjoying  the 
innocent  recreations  of  life. 

This  tendency  of  the  soul  towards  God,  this 
keeping  him  steadily  in  our  thoughts,  this  constant 
study  to  approve  ourselves  to  him,  this  earnest 
desire  to  obtain  his  favour,  this  uniform  temper  of 
gratitude  and  love  to  him,  constitute  that  fervour 
of  spirit  which  the  apostle  enjoins.  Whenever  the 
incessant  calls  of  business  prevent  us  from  attend- 
ing to  the  supreme  concern  of  our  relative  dis- 
charge of  the  stated  duties  of  public  and  private 
devotion,  whenever  worldly  pursuits  engross  our 
thoughts  and  affections  so  as  to  weaken  the  fel*- 
vour  of  our  pious  desires,  we  may  be  assured  that 
we  are  more  devoted  to  the  world  than  is  compat- 
ible with  our  religious  duties — more  devoted  to  the 


254  CONSIDERATION  OF  TEMPORAL 

world  than  is  due  to  the  perishing,  uncertain,  and 
unsatisfying  objects  of  our  pursuit — and  more  de- 
voted to  the  world  than  is  necessary  to  our  solid 
advantage  or  comfort,  to  the  discharge  of  our  duty 
to  those  who  are  dependent  on  us,  or  to  the  grati- 
fication of  our  reasonable  wishes.  We  cannot  serve 
God  and  mammon.  While  the  pursuits  of  the  world 
thus  occupy  our  thoughts  and  affections,  while  the 
forming  and  executing  of  plans  of  worldly  prospe- 
rity constitute  the  unceasing  study  and  labour  of 
life,  we  may  be  lovers  of  pleasure,  we  may  be  vo- 
taries of  mammon,  but  we  cannot  be  the  servants 
of  God.  But  when  diligence  in  our  worldly  con- 
C€rns  is  united  with  pious  fervour  of  spirit,  and 
with  a  supreme  regard  to  the  service  of  God,  then, 

o.  These  duties  have  an  important  influence  on 
each  other. 

Pious  fervour  of  spirit  and  habitual  regard  to 
the  authority  of  God  can  alone  prevent  the  diligent 
and  assiduous  pursuit  of  the  lawful  objects  of  the 
world  from  corrupting  our  souls,  and  perhaps  lead- 
ing us  to  the  commission  of  acts  which  reason  and 
conscience  would  condemn.  He  who  rises  early 
and  sits  up  late,  and  eats  the  bread  of  carefulness 
only  that  his  worldly  plans  may  be  crowned  with 
success,  forgetting  God  his  Maker,  the  concerns  of 
his  salvation,  and  the  service  which,  as  a  rational 
and  immortal  creature,  he  owes  to  the  Lord  his 
God,  will  not  be  able  to  resist  those  powerful  temp- 
tations, against  which  there  is  no  safeguard  but 
the  fear  of  God.  In  him  who  is  not  controlled  by 
this  holy  fear,  what  security  is  there,  that  when  the 
preservation  or  the  acquisition  of  that  wealth  to 
wjiicb  he  is  supremely  devoted,  tempts  him  to  an 


AND  SPIRITUAL  DUTIES.  255 

act  of  injustice  or  dishonesty,  his  soul  will  rise 
superior  to  the  temptation'?  In  him  whose  bosom 
never  glows  with  pious  love  and  gratitude  to  God 
his  Maker,  Benefactor,  and  Redeemer,  is  there  not 
danger  that  nobleness  of  sentiment,  that  the  feel- 
ings of  generosity  and  benevolence  will  become 
extinct ;  and  that  despicable  meanness,  low  cun- 
ning, and  griping  avarice  will  usurp  dominion  1 
The  pursuit  of  gain,  independently  of  the  prin- 
ciples and  motives  that  should  excite  and  regulate 
the  pursuit,  and  of  the  pious  and  virtuous  objects 
to  which  it  should  be  devoted,  tends  to  contract 
and  t'^  corrupt  the  soul.  The  passion  for  it  is  then 
only  praiseworthy  and  honourable,  when  religion 
controls  it,  when  pious  fervour  expands  its  narrow 
and  selfish  spirit,  when  an  habitual  regard  to  the 
service  which  we  owe  to  God  secures  us  from  its 
numerous  and  powerful  temptations. 

On  the  other  hand,  diligence  in  the  lawful  pur- 
suits of  the  world  is  useful,  and  indeed  necessary, 
to  prevent  pious  fervour  of  spirit  from  running  into 
the  most  dangerous  excesses.  He  who,  neglecting 
his  worldly  concerns,  devotes  himself  to  religious 
•contemplations  and  exercises,  not  only  violates  the 
divine  precept  which  enjoins  him  not  to  be  slothful 
in  business,  but  is  in  danger  of  losing  the  character 
of  an  enlightened,  sober,  consistent  Christian,  and 
of  becoming  an  enthusiastic  zealot.  The  objects 
of  religious  contemplation  are  so  sublime — God 
and  his  perfections,  the  Saviour  and  his  glories, 
heaven  and  its  felicities,  are  objects  so  ineffably 
exalted  and  inspiring,  that  when  the  lively  affec- 
tions of  the  soul  are  constantly  occupied  on  them, 
judgment  becomes  obscured,  and  reason  dethroned. 
Our  unbridled  imagination  hurries  us  into  all  the 


256 


itONSIDE RATION  OF  TE3IP0RAL 


lamentable  excesses  of  enthusiasm,  or  we  sink  from 
a  height  too  dazzling  for  our  weak  powers,  into  the 
vale  of  dejection,  melancholy,  and  despair.  We 
were  formed  for  the  world,  its  duties,  its  pursuits, 
and  its  innocent  joys.  To  serve  the  Lord,  who 
made,  and  who  will  finally  judge  us,  is  indeed  the 
end  of  our  being ;  and  while  we  fulfil  our  obliga- 
tions to  him,  and  keep  his  service  constantly  and 
supremely  in  view,  we  shall  prevent  our  diligence 
in  business  from  quenching  our  pious  fervour,  and 
our  pious  fervour  from  leading  us  to  neglect  the 
necessary  duties  and  occupations  of  life. 

Admirable  and  appropriate,  therefore,  is  ,the  in- 
junction of  the  apostle — "Not  slothful  in  business; 
fervent  in  spirit ;  serving  the  Lord." 

Alas !  how  many  separate  duties  which  ought 
ever  to  be  united !  View  that  votary  of  the  world, 
that  slave  of  business,  ever  alert,  ever  pressing 
forward,  ever  occupied.  See  you  him  in  the  temple 
of  his  God  l  The  world  is  the  only  temple  in  which 
he  worships,  mammon  is  the  idol  which  receives  all 
his  homage — he  has  none  for  the  Being  who  made, 
and  sustains,  and  who  is  to  judge  him.  See  you 
him  retiring  to  his  closet,  to  offer  his  prayers  and 
praises  to  the  Author  of  his  being,  the  Benefactor 
of  his  life  1  His  closet  witnesses  only  his  vows  of 
devotion  to  the  world — it  is  the  scene  only  of 
worldly  cares  and  concerns.  Look  into  his  heart. 
Glows  it  with  pious  fervour,  with  divine  and  holy 
emotions  t  The  love  of  gain  is  the  supreme  [)assion 
which  has  drawn  wiihin  its  corrupting  vortex  all 
his  powers  and  affections.  What  must  the  end  be 
of  such  a  man"!  Surely  he  is  not  fitted  for  the 
presence  of  his  God.  What  must  his  end  be,  but 
everlasting  destruction  with  that  world  which  he 


AND  SPIRITUAL  DUTIES.  257 

has  made  his  portion — the  bitter  pains  of  eternal 
death. 

Turn  your  view  to  an  opposite  character,  more 
rare  indeed,  but  almost  equally  hostile  to  the  true 
Christian  spirit.  See  that  misguided  zealot.  Puffed 
up  with  spiritual  pride,  or  deluded  by  a  healed 
imagination,  he  looks  down  upon  and  denounces 
the  pursuits,  a;nd  duties,  and  enjoyments  of  life. 
He  estimates  the  power  of  religion  solely  by  the 
fervent  emotions  wiiich  ii  excites  in  his  soul,  and 
not  by  the  effect  which  it  produces  on  his  tempers, 
his  life,  and  his  conversation;  and  thus  devotes  his 
time  almost  entirely  to  religious  exercises  and  con- 
templations, undervaluing,  if  not  neglecting,  the 
social  and  relative  duties  of  life. 

Brethren,  be  it  our  care  to  avoid  these  dangerous 
extremes.  Let  us  consider  diligence  in  some  law- 
ful pursuit  as  the  law  of  our  nature,  the  dictate  of 
reason,  the  command  of  God.  But  let  us  also 
remember,  that  pious  fervour  of  spirit,  holy  love 
and  devotion  to  the  Lord,  can  alone  preserve  us 
from  the  corrupting  power  of  the  world,  and  qua- 
lify us  for  the  enjoyment  of  our  heavenly  home. 
Let  us  check  our  immoderate  ardour  for  the  things 
of  the  world,  by  the  solemn  question,  which  we 
cannot  too  often  address  to  ourselves,  "  What  will 
it  profit  a  man,  if  he  gain  the  whole  world,  and 
lose  his  own  souM"  To  serve  the  Lord,  who  made, 
preserves,  and  redeems  us,  and  thus  to  secure  our 
eternal  salvation,  when  the  world  and  all  that  it 
contains  shall  have  passed  away — let  this  be  our 
supreme  concern.  In  the  busy  scenes  of  life,  let 
our  hearts  ascend  in  prayer  to  God  for  the  com- 
forts of  his  mercy  and  the  guidance  of  his  grace. 
In  the  midst  of  the  enjoyments  of  the  world,  let 

Vol.  IJI.  33 


258  CONSIDERATION,  &C. 

US  check  our  immoderate  indulgence  in  them,  by 
ascendinij  in  heart  and  mind  to  that  heavenly  coun- 
try,  where  is  reserved  for  the  servants  of  God,  a 
happiness  which  eye  hath  not  seen,  which  ear  hath 
not  heard,  and  of  which  the  heart  of  man  cannot 
conceive.  Let  us  constantly  remember,  that  (to 
use  the  expressive  language  of  our  liturgy)  "  we 
are  set  in  the  midst  of  so  many  and  great  dangers, 
that,  by  reason  of  the  frailty  of  our  nature,  we  can- 
not always  stand  upright."  Let  our  dependence, 
therefore,  be  placed  upon  that  grace,  without  which 
we  can  do  nothing.  In  the  language  of  the  liturgy, 
let  us  beseech  God  to  grant  us  such  a  measure  of 
his  grace,  that  we,  running  the  way  of  his  com- 
mandments, may  obtain  his  promises,  and  be  made 
partakers  of  his  heavenly  treasures.  "  Not  slothful 
in  business,  fervent  in  spirit,"  let  us  pass  the  time 
of  our  probation  on  earth  in  "  serving  the  Lord." 
Then,  though,  when  we  have  done  all,  we  shall  be 
unprofitable  servants,  yet  we  have  the  unchanging 
promise  of  our  gracious  God,  that,  through  the 
merits  of  our  all-prevailing  Mediator,  an  entrance 
shall  be  administered  unto  us,  into  the  kingdom  of 
our  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 


SERMON   XXII. 


niRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM. 


St.  Matthew  xxi.  JO,  11. 

And  wlion  he  was  come  into  Jerusalem,  all  the  city  was  moved, 
saying.  Who  is  this?  And  the  multitude  said,  This  is  Jesus, 
the  prophet  of  Nazareth  of  Galilee. 

And,  my  brethren,  were  strangers  to  us  and  to 
our  religion  to  appear  on  this  day,  for  the  first  time, 
among  us,  and  to  witness  the  general  burst  of  joy 
which  marks  this  festive  day,  and  to  hear  that  it 
was  called  forth  in  commemoration  of  the  birth  of 
some  celebrated  personage,  his  Avould  be  the  in- 
quiry which  was  excited  by  the  advent  of  Christ 
to  Jerusalem,  Who  is  this  ?  And  ours  would  be 
the  answer  of  the  multitude  who  accompanied  him, 
of  the  admiring  thousands  who  hung  upon  the 
words  that  proceeded  out  of  his  mouth,  of  the  ce- 
lestial harbingers  of  his  birth,  This  is  Jesus,  thei 
Prophet  of  Nazareth  of  Galilee — the  Teacher  sent 
from  God,  who  spake  as  never  man  spake — the 
Saviour,  who  is  Christ  the  Lord. 

The  individual  who  comes  forward  as  the  Guide 
and  Instructor  of  mankind,  must  expect  his  pre- 
tensions to  be  strictly  scrutinized,  and  his  character 
and  qualifications  to  be  brought  to  the  ordeal  of 
severe  investigation.  Who  is  this?  is  a  question 
which  not  merely  idle  curiosity,  but  sober  reflec- 
tion, will  prompt.   And  when  the  subjects  on  which 


^60  CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM. 

this  personage  professes  to  cast  the  light  of  truth, 
respect  not  physical,  intellectual,  or  political,  but 
religious  knowledge — not  the  evanescent  life  tliat 
now  i<5,  not  the  transitory  concerns  of  the  world, 
but  the  never-ending  existence,  the  enduring  scenes 
beyond  the  grave — the  claims  which  he  advances 
to  our  confidence  and  submission  become  infinitely 
exalted  in  importance. 

Never  was  the  solemn  attention  of  the  world 
called  to  a  personage  so  interesting  as  he  whose 
birth  we  this  day  commemorate,  Jesus,  the  Prophet 
of  Nazareth  of  Galilee.  In  the  fulfilment  of  pre- 
dictions which,  shining  with  the  increasing  lustre 
of  ages,  had  from  the  beirinning  marked  him  as 
the  desire  of  all  nations,  and  the  hope  of  his  chosen 
peo[)!e  Israel,  he  apj)eared,  to  accomplish  the  stu- 
pendous object  from  which  cherubim  and  seraphim 
would  have  shrunk — to  take  away  sin,  to  make 
atonement  for  transgression,  to  bring  in  everlasting 
righteousness :  he  appeared,  to  perform  what  had 
hitherto  baffled  the  mightiest  efforts  of  the  human 
intellect,  to  unbar  the  prison-house  of  the  grave, 
and  to  open  the  mansions  of  the  eternal  world. 

And  surely  every  one  who  reflects  that  he  pos- 
sesses a  spiritual  and  immortal  nature,  must  in- 
stantly feel  the  earnest  and  deeply-solicitous  desire 
that  a  personage,  whose  errand  is  so  benignant, 
whose  designs  of  mercy  are  of  such  infinite  mo- 
ment, may  evidence  those  qualifications  and  exhibit 
those  testimonies  which  would  irresistably  prove 
that  God  is  with  him. 

Let  us  then  with  humility  and  reverence  investi- 
gate the  personal  character  of  him  who,  as  at  this 
time,  appeared  as  the  divine  Messenger  of  the  Fa- 
iher,  the  powers  which  he  exercised,  and  the  offices 


CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM.  261 

which  he  came  to  execute,  and  we  shall  see  abun- 
dant cause  to  adore  him  as  the  Teacher  sent  from 
God — the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life — the  Saviour, 
who  is  Christ  the  Lord. 

1.  The  personal  character  of  Jesus  Christ. 

In  one  who  should  claim  a  divine  mission,  who 
should  profess  to  reform  the  world  and  to  establish 
a  system  of  religious  and  moral  truth,  we  should 
expect  to  behold  exemplified  the  exalted  virtues 
which  he  inculcates.  Example  adorning  and  en- 
forcing precept,  would  alone  give  authority  to  his 
instructions,  and  excite  our  admiration  and  our 
confidence. 

In  the  character  of  Jesus  Christ  the  expectations 
of  the  most  scrupulous  are  fully  gratified.  The 
precepts  and  the  spirit  of  the  religion  which  he 
inculcated  were  of  tiie  most  pure  and  exalted  na- 
ture; and  this  spirit  shone  forth  most  resplendently 
in  his  character ;  these  precepts,  in  their  uttermost 
purity  and  strictness,  he  uniformly  illustrated  and 
enforced  in  the  tenour  of  his  life. 

He  inculcated  humility,  meekness,  and  lowliness, 
as  the  most  exalted  virtues  that  can  adorn  the  hu- 
man character.  Of  these  virtues  we  behold  him  a 
perfect  model.  Born  in  a  manger,  and  cradling 
with  the  beasts  of  the  stall,  the  example  of  humility 
which  ushered  him  into  the  world,  marked  every 
period  of  his  life,  and  shone  forth  most  illustriously 
in  its  close.  Wandering  without  a  place  to  lay  his 
head ;  not  disdaining  the  society  of  the  refuse  of 
the  people,  of  publicans  and  sinners,  when  his  ob- 
ject was  to  administer  to  their  spiritual  wants; 
choosing  for  his  companions,  for  the  friends  of  his 
bosom  and  the  heralds  of  his  instructions  to  the 
world,  those  emphatically  styled,  in  the  language 


262  CHRIST  RIDING  IM'O  JERUSALEM. 

of  contempt,  the  fishermen  of  Galilee ;  wishing 
neither  the  favour  of  the  great  nor  the  splendid 
gifts  of  tiie  wealthy,  but  going  about  among  the 
children  of  poverty  and  affliction,  that  he  might 
bind  up  the  broken-hearted  and  comfort  those  that 
mourn  ;  when  the  great  work  of  atonement  for 
man's  transgression  was  to  be  effected,  not  shrink- 
ing from  the  agony  and  infamy  of  the  cross,  the 
punishment  of  the  vilest  malefactors;  where,  among 
the  most  perfect  of  the  sons  of  men,  was  there  one 
who  displayed  humility  like  thine,  Saviour  of  the 
world  ^  Thouo^h  thou  wast  the  bri(?htness  of  the 
Father's  glory,  the  only-begotten  Son  who  shared 
the  throne  of  universal  dominion,  thou  didst  hum- 
ble thyself  to  a  life  of  the  deepest  suff'ering,  and  to 
a  death  of  agony  and  infamy. 

Jesus  Christ  inculcated  purity,  self-denial,  and 
the  most  active  benevolence ;  and  he  exhibited  in 
his  character  and  life  what  his  instructions  en- 
forced :  deceit  was  not  in  his  tongue,  neither  was 
guile  found  in  his  mouth.  He  took  up  the  cross  of 
self-denial,  and  it  sunk  him  to  the  grave.  In  doing 
good,  in  relieving  the  diseased  bodies,  in  saving 
the  guilty  souls  of  men,  his  heart  was  unceasingly 
occupied,  his  life  unceasingly  engaged. 

He  inculcated  that  perfection  of  virtue,  the  for- 
giveness of  injuries;  and  though  persecution  as- 
sailed him — though  his  sacred  person  received  the 
vilest  indignities — though  by  wicked  hands  he  was 
crucified  and  slain ;  prayers  were  the  only  re- 
proaches which  he  poured  forth  on  his  murderers 

"  Father,  forgive  them  :  for  they  know  not  what 

they  do." 

There  was  not  a  virtue  which  can  adorn  or  exalt 
the  human  character,  which  can  claim  for  it  admi- 


CHRIST  RIDIKG   INTO  JERUSALEM.  263 

ration,  veneration,  and  love,  or  which  can  raise  it 
to  a  resembhince  to  the  perfection  and  purity  of 
the  divine  nature,  wliich  shone  not  forth  with  tran- 
scendent lustre  in  the  character  and  life  of  Jesus 
Christ. 

From  the  character  of  Christ  turn  your  view  to 
the  powers  which  he  exercised. 

These  are  the  great  tests  by  which  we  determine 
his  pretensions  to  divine  authority ;  for  how  can  a 
man  do  works  obviously  and  decidedly  transcend- 
ing human  power,  unless  God  be  with  him  1  Be- 
hold, then,  this  Prophet  of  Nazareth,  commanding 
and  receiving  the  obedience  of  universal  nature — 
by  a  word  calming  the  boisterous  tempest — by  a 
word  quelling  the  raging  surges  of  the  ocean  :  hear 
him  speaking  the  word,  and  the  eyes  of  the  blind 
are  opened,  the  lame  man  leaps  as  a  hart,  the  ears 
of  the  deaf  are  unstopped,  the  tongue  of  the  dumb 
sings :  behold  him  entering  the  domains  of  death, 
and  raising  to  life  and  strength  the  victims  of  cor- 
ruption. Well  may  we  say,  Could  a  man  do  these 
miracles,  except  God  were  with  him  1 

In  regard  to  these  miracles,  there  could  be  no 
deception,  no  collusion  :  they  were  wrought,  not 
in  some  obscure  retreat,  but  in  the  face  of  day — 
not  among  a  few  of  his  friends  and  companions, 
but  amidst  large  assemblages  of  the  people,  among 
his  bitter  and  scrutinizing  enemies. 

Require  we  evidence  that  he  wrought  tliese 
mighty  works'?  The  record  of  them  is  contained 
in  writings  which  have  been  handed  down  to  us 
from  the  period  of  his  appearance.  As  a  faithful 
history  of  his  life  and  actions,  friends  and  foes  both 
appealed  to  them.  Every  possible  evidence  which 
authenticates  ancient  writings,  supports  them.  The 


264  CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  .rt:UUSALEM. 

scepticism  which  rejects  them,  must  reject  all  his- 
torical testimony,  and  destroy  the  records  of  the 
past  transactions  of  the  world. 

Are  there  then  any  who  doubt  whether  Jesus  of 
Nazareth  and  his  apostlos  wrought  the  miracles 
which  have  been  ascribed  to  them]  How  will  these 
sceptics  account  for  a  fact  which  even  the  early 
opponents  of  Christianity  attest — the  rapid  and 
universal  propagation  of  the  Gospel,  its  establish- 
ment on  the  ruins  of  that  Pagan  superstition  whose 
temples  were  supported  by  the  credulity  of  the 
ignorant,  the  passions  of  the  vicious,  and  the  power 
of  the  mighty  I 

Did  the  potent  sway  of  wealth,  learning,  or  rank, 
aid  the  promulgators  of  this  religion  in  a  system 
of  imposture  ]  They  subsisted  principally  by  the 
work  of  their  hands,  or  the  alms  of  their  followers; 
they  were  illiterate  fishermen ;  they  rose  from  among 
the  outcasts  of  the  people. 

Did  the  wealth,  the  power,  and  the  learning  of 
the  world  unite  to  establish  and  support  the  reli- 
gion of  Jesus  of  Nazareth  I  The  wealth,  learning, 
and  power  of  the  world  combined  to  crush  the  dis- 
ciples of  a  crucified  Galilean,  these  setters  forth  of 
strange  gods,  these  disturbers  of  the  peace  of  the 
world. 

Did  the  religion  of  Jesus  and  his  disciples  offer 
any  compromise  with  the  passions  of  men,  hold 
forth  any  excitement  to  his  pride,  any  lure  to  his 
passions'?  Look  at  this  religion  and  say,  whether, 
to  the  prejudices  and  pride  of  man,  many  of  its 
doctrines  are  not  revolting  ;  and  whether,  to  his 
guilty  passions,  its  pure  and  self-denying  precepts 
are  not  hatefuH  So  far  from  conciliating  the  pre- 
judices, or  enlisting  in  its  support  the  passions  of 


CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM.  265 

men,  the  Gospel  of  Christ  was  to  the  Jews  a  stum- 
bling block,  and  to  the  Greeks  foolishness. 

Were  there  any  worldly  motives  which  could 
have  induced  the  disciples  of  Christ  to  form  or  to 
persevere  in  a  system  of  imposture  I  Totally  des- 
titute, as  ignorant  fishermen,  of  the  qualifications 
and  means  of  imposture,  the  bonds  and  imprison- 
ment to  which  they  were  soon  subject  would  have 
arrested  them  in  a  course  of  deception  ;  and  it  is 
contrary  to  reason  and  nature  to  suppose  that  they 
"would  have  persevered  in  attesting  the  death  and 
resurrection  of  their  Master,  in  constant  opposition 
to  their  worldly  interest,  through  poverty,  perse- 
cution, and  death. 

It  is  morally  impossible  that  a  religion  opposed 
to  all  the  prejudices  and  passions  of  mankind,  which 
the  arm  of  wealth  and  power  sought  to  crush,  would 
have  been  carried  triumphant  through  the  world  by 
a  set  of  illiterate  and  obscure  impostors.  Unless 
Jesus  of  Nazareth  had  himself  exercised  miracu- 
lous powers,  and  had  conferred  these  powers  on 
his  disciploSj  his  death  would  have  blasted  his  de- 
signs; and  his  disciples,  who,  at  this  awful  event, 
forsook  him  and  fled,  instead  of  being  the  illustri- 
ous heralds  of  a  religion  which  shook  to  its  foun- 
dations the  temple  at  Mount  Zion  and  overthrew 
the  altars  of  Pagan  idolatry,  would  have  sunk  again 
into  obscurity  among  the  fishermen  of  Galilee. 

But  if  we  rejoice  that  he  whose  birth  we  this 
day  celebrate,  exhibits,  in  his  personal  character 
and  in  the  works  which  he  j^erformed,  the  strong- 
est claims  to  confidence  as  the  divine  Messenger 
of  the  Father,  we  shall  find  these  claims  powerfully 
enhanced  by  the  testimony  of  prophecy. 

For  who  but  some  being  commissioned  by  that' 
Vol.  hi.  34 


266  CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM. 

Almighty  Jehovah  who  beholds  with  one  glance 
the  past,  the  present,  and  the  future,  could  foretell 
future  and  distant  events,  the  most  improbable  and 
incredible  l  Pass  by  the  numerous  predictions  re- 
lative to  the  Messiah,  enlightening,  through  a  long 
tract  of  time,  the  darkness  of  the  world,  and  at  last 
centering  all  their  rays  in  Jesus,  the  Prophet  of 
Nazareth,  and  contemplate  a  single  prediction 
which  he  delivered — the  destruction  of  Jerusalem, 
the  dispersion  of  the  Jews,  and  their  remaining  for 
centuries  a  despised  and  persecuted,  yet  distinct 
and  independent  people.  The  prediction  was  made 
— history  records,  our  eyes  see  its  signal  fulfilment. 

Thus  then,  my  brethren,  while  the  personal  cha- 
racter of  Jesus  of  Nazareth,  whose  birth  we  this 
day  celebrate,  entitles  him  to  our  esteem  and  con- 
fidence, the  powers  which  he  exercised  prove  that 
God  was  with  him — prove  that  he  was,  what  he 
professed  to  be,  the  Son  of  God  and  the  Saviour 
of  the  world. 

2.  Our  confidence  in  his  divine  character  and 
mission  will  be  increased,  and  our  grateful  joy  con- 
firmed and  enlivened,  if  we  contemplate  the  exalted 
offices  which  he  came  to  execute. 

As  a  religious  Mstrnctor.  Where,  but  in  the 
words  of  him  who  spake  as  never  man  spake,, 
shall  we  find  a  full  and  luminous  exhibition  of  the 
perfections  and  will  of  the  eternal  Maker  and  So- 
vereign of  the  universe — of  those  duties  by  which 
we  must  honour  and  glorify  him  who  has  made, 
who  sustains  and  governs,  and  who  is  to  judge  us 
— of  the  duties  which  our  fellow-men  claim  from 
us — of  those  by  which  we  must  advance  our  own 
perfection  and  happiness  1  Where,  but  in  the  Gos- 
pel of  Jesus,  the  Prophet  of  Nazareth,  shall  we  find 


CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM.  267 

every  pious  and  moral  virtue  exalted  to  the  highest 
purity — illustrated  by  example,  as  well  as  taught 
by  precept — rendered  practicable  by  divine  aids, 
and  enforced  by  everlasting  sanctions  1 

As  our  gracious  High  Priest  and  Intercessor. 
Wliere,  but  in  that  cross,  which,  by  the  sufferings 
and  death  of  him,  tlie  Almighty  Victim,  vindicated 
to  the  universe  the  violated  authority  of  its  Al- 
mighty Sovereign,  is  the  mystery  resolved  which 
so  long  perplexed  and  tortured  the  bosom  of  guilty 
man — hoic  the  punishment  of  sin,  which  divine 
Justice  demanded,  can  be  reconciled  with  its  par- 
don, to  which  divine  mercy  prompted  I  Where, 
but  in  the  merits  of  him,  the  Lamb  of  God,  who 
taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world,  can  we  find  the 
balm  which  soothes  the  pains  of  a  guilty  con- 
science, and  allays  the  fears  of  the  troubled  bosom? 
Where,  but  in  him  whose  mercy  is  equal  to  his 
power,  can  the  guilty  obtain  a  refuge,  the  weary 
and  heavy-laden  an  eternal  rest?  Where,  but  in 
the  intercession  of  him  who  is  an  all-prevailing 
Advocate  with  the  Father,  can  we  find  a  shelter 
from  the  penalties  of  that  divine  law  which  we 
have  violated — from  the  fearful  indignation  of  that 
justice  which,  by  our  transgressions,  we  have  pro- 
voked X 

As  the  great  King  and  Captain  of  our  salva- 
tion. Where,  but  in  that  Holy  Spirit  which  he, 
our  divine  Redeemer,  hath  purchased  for  us,  and 
which  he  confers  in  answer  to  our  prayers,  which 
he  conveys  through  the  ministrations  and  ordi- 
nances of  his  church,  can  we  find  that  light  which 
will  disperse  from  our  minds  the  shades  of  spiritual 
darkness — that  grace  which  will  subdue  in  our 
hearts  the  sinful  dominion  of  the  passions,  and  in- 


;26&  CHRIST  lilDING  INTO  JERUSALEM. 

vest  Gur  souls  with  those  lioly  virtues  whicli  alone 
can  qualify  us  for  the  fruition  of  the  divine  pre- 
sence— and  that  almighty  strength  which  will  en- 
able us  to  overcome  the  numerous,  insidious,  and 
powerful  temptations  that  assail  us  1  Where,  but 
in  him,  the  Kjng  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords,  to 
whom  all  power  is  given  in  heaven  and  in  earth, 
shall  we  find  an  unfailinor  refuse  amidst  the  agita- 
tions,  the  changes,  and  trials  of  this  mortal  pil- 
grimage? Whence,  when  convulsed  in  the  grasp 
of  our  last  enemy,  shall  we  draw  consolation  and 
suf)port,  but  from  the  grace  of  liim  who  hath  passed 
through  the  grave  and  gate  of  death,  to  conduct 
his  followers  to  a  joyful  resurrection  1  To  whom, 
indeed,  when  our  souls  tremble  on  the  verge  of 
eternity,  shall  we  go  but  unto  thee,  blessed  Jesus? 
— thou  only  hast  the  words  of  eternal  life— art 
mighty  to  save  in  the  hour  of  death,  and  in  the 
day  of  judgment. 

At  this  season,  brethren,  when  the  church  calls 
you  to  celebrate  the  nativity  of  your  Lord,  how 
can  you  be  more  suitably  or  profitably  engaged 
than  in  the  inquiry  that  occupied  Jerusalem  at  his 
advent  into  it — Who  is  this?  It  is  Jesus,  the  Pro- 
phet of  Nazareth  ;  he  whose  pure  and  benevolent 
virtues  demand  your  admiration  and  love;  he  whose 
divine  powers  prove  that  he  is  a  Teacher  sent  from 
God— the  Saviour,  who  is  Christ  the  Lord  ;  he 
who,  in  his  beneficent  and  divine  offices,  as  that 
Instructor,  that  atoning  Priest  and  Intercessor, 
that  Almighty  Defender  and  Ruler,  claims  your 
profound  homage,  your  cordial  trust,  your  grateful 
love,  your  devoted  service. 

God,  who  at  sundry  times  and  in  divers  manners 
spake  ill  time  past  unto  the  fathers  by  the  pro- 


CHRIST  RIDING  IxNTO  JERUSALEM-  269 

phets,  bath,  in  these  last  days,  spoken  unto  us  by 
his  Son;  and  his  commandment  is,  that  we  believe 
on  the  name  of  his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  the  only- 
begottim  of  the  Father,  full  of  grace  and  truth, 
miglity  to  save.  On  the  infinitely  momentous  sub- 
ject of  their  acceptance  with  God,  Jews  and  Gen- 
tiles, the  bond  and  the  free,  the  learned  and  the 
ignorant,  are  all  equal ;  they  have  but  one  hope — 
he  who,  as  at  this  time,  came  to  save  his  people 
from  their  sins;  and  who  will  thus  save  the  humble 
and  penitent,  believing  in  his  name,  and  merits, 
and  power. 

See  then  that  ye  refuse  not  him  that  speaketh  ; 
for  how  many  and  how  infinitely  powerful  the 
claims  which  he  presents  to  our  homage  and  our 
confidence!  He  is,  as  an  inspired  prophet  calls 
him,  Wonderful,  whether  we  consider  the  dignity 
and  glory  of  his  nature,  the  astonishing  mystery  of 
his  incarnation,  or  the  splendid  triumphs  of  his 
grace:  he  is  the  Counsellor — the  infinite,  eternal, 
incomprehensible  Word,  who  promulgates  the 
counsels  of  the  Godhead,  the  messages  of  divine 
wisdom :  he  is  the  miqhty  God,  equal  in  power 
and  glory  with  the  everlasting  Father,  Jehovah, 
King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords :  and  he  was 
hailed  by  adoring  seraphs  on  the  morn  of  his  birth 
— and  on  the  anniversary  of  this  blessed  day  let 
us,  brethren,  thus  adore  him — as  the  Prince  of 
Peace,  the  Messenger  of  glad  tidings  to  a  guilty 
world,  speaking  peace,  by  the  merits  of  his  blood, 
to  the  guilty  conscience,  and  calming,  by  his  peace- 
ful and  consoling  spirit,  the  agitations  of  the  sinful 
and  troubled  soul.  "  Fairer  art  thou  than  the  sons 
of  men,  O  thou  most  mighty  ! — grace  is  poured  on 
ihy  lips — God  hath  blessed  thee  for  ever." 


270  €HRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM. 

Brethren,  let  not  this  sacred  festival,  which  re- 
cords his  deep  humiliation,  which  presents  him  to 
us  in  the  garb  of  poverty  and  wretchedness,  the 
devoted  representative  of  our  guilt  and  heir  of  our 
misery,  return,  time  after  time,  and  still  find  any 
of  us  insensible  to  the  infinite  condescensions  of 
his  love,  unmoved  by  the  solicitations  of  his  mercy, 
attached  solely  to  the  perishing  pleasures  of  the 
world,  and  indifferent  to  those  immortal  glories 
which  he  hath  brought  down  from  heaven  for  us. 
How  inestimable  indeed  the  gift  of  life  and  immor- 
tality which  this  Prophet  of  Nazareth  dispenses ! 
The  original  sentence  of  mortality,  "  Dust  thou 
art,  and  unto  dust  shalt  thou  return,"  will  be  ex- 
ecuted upon  all  the  sons  of  men.  That  towering 
strength,  which  subdues  to  our  dominion  the  powers 
of  nature,  and  often  marches  in  horror  through  the 
world,  will  fail  at  the  touch  of  death.  Those  ardent 
desires,  which,  not  confined  within  the  limits  of 
this  earth,  wing  their  way  through  immeasurable 
space,  will  sink  under  the  stroke  which  consigns 
the  breast  in  which  they  glow  to  the  embrace  of 
corruption.  Those  precious  sensibilities  of  the 
heart  which  now  burn  with  so  bright  and  pure  a 
flame,  will  soon  be  extinguished  in  the  dark,  and 
cold,  and  silent  grave.  In  that  grave  already  slum- 
ber myriads,  who  were  once  ardent,  active,  joyful, 
like  ourselves.  Into  the  awful  repose  of  this  house 
appointed  for  all  the  living,  we  have  seen  com- 
mitted, alas!  how  many  endeared  objects  of  our 
friendship  and  affection  ! — and  here,  in  this  gloomy 
receptacle,  will  friends  and  relatives  soon,  with 
sorrowing  footsteps,  consign  us.  And  is  this  the 
end  of  our  splendid  worldly  career — this  the  ter- 
mination of  our  labours  and  our  hopes — to  be  en- 


CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM.  271 

tombed  for  ever  in  the  mansions  of  darkness — to 
have  the  worm  for  our  couch,  and  the  earth-worm 
for  our  covering?  No,  brethren;  this  joyful  day 
celebrates  the  birth  of  that  Almighty  Conqueror, 
who  has  subdued  to  his  dominion  these  dread  do- 
mains. And  if  our  faith  is  stayed  on  him,  he  will 
redeem  us  from  death,  he  will  ransom  us  from  the 
grave.  Through  the  grave  and  gate  of  death  he 
will  open  to  us  the  path  of  life,  and  will  conduct 
us  to  those  mansions  of  glorj  which  he  hath  gone 
before  to  prepare  for  us.  "  The  ransomed  of  the 
Lord  shall  return,  and  come  to  Zion  with  songs 
and  everlasting  joy  upon  their  heads :  they  shall 
obtain  joy  and  gladness,  and  sorrow  and  sighing 
shall  flee  away."* 

Let,  then,  every  return  of  this  sacred  festival, 
which  celebrates  the  birth  of  that  Saviour  who  is 
Christ  the  Lord,  excite  in  all  faithful  Christians 
the  emotions  of  triumphant  cqnfidence  and  grateful 
adoration. 

In  his  humiliation  they  witness  the  most  powerful 
proof  of  his  infinite  love  for  them — in  his  glorious 
offices  and  character  they  behold  the  pledges  of 
their  salvation.  Having  devoted  themselves  to  him 
by  lively  faith,  and  serving  him  in  holiness  and 
righteousness,  they  have  secured  their  interest  in 
the  blessings  of  his  redemption.  He  whom  they 
this  day  hail  as  the  Son  of  the  Most  Highest,  is 
their  ever-present  and  invincible  Redeemer.  Head 
over  all  things  to  his  church,  he  controls  and  directs 
all  the  events  of  the  world  to  subserve  the  good  of 
his  peopk :  all  the  attributes  of  the  Godhead  are 
engaged,  faithful  Christians,  in  the  person  of  your 
Saviour,  for  your  defence,  your  comfort,  and  sal- 

*  Isaiah  xxxv.  10. 


272  CHRIST  RIDING  INTO  JERUSALEM. 

vation :  through  his  almighty  mediation  you. call 
approach  with  boldness  the  throne  of  offended 
justice  :  in  his  mercy  you  can  find  a  refuge  from 
every  guilty  fear,  and  every  corroding  sorrow  :  his 
grace  will  conduct  you  through  all  the  trials  and 
conflicts  of  this  sinful  and  weary  pilgrimage,  to  the 
everlasting  repose  of  his  heavenly  kingdom.  Let 
then  the  voice  of  praise,  on  this  hallowed  day,  when 
his  reign  commenced,  ascend  to  this  great  King  and 
Captain  of  your  salvation,  this  everlasting  Prince 
of  Peace.  Behold,  the  church  invites  you  to  the 
feast  of  the  holy  taale,  to  seal  there  your  vows  of 
grateful  love,  to  devote  yourselves  anew  to  that 
Son  of  the  Father,  who,  for  your  sakes,  became  an 
infant  of  days,  and  bought  you  with  his  precious 
blood.  Come,  then  and  in  the  emotions  of  peni- 
tence commemorate  your  Saviour  sacrificed  for 
you.  Come,  and  ir,  the  fervour  of  devout  grati- 
tude adore  his  surpissing  love.  Come,  humble, 
faithful,  and  obedient,  and  receive  the  pledges  of 
the  mercy  and  grace  of  that  Saviour  who  is  Christ 
the  Lord ;  and  unite  in  the  song  with  which  the 
host  of  heaven  proclaimed  the  glad  tidings  of  his 
birth — "  Glory  to  God  in  the  highest,  and  on  earth 
peace,  good  will  toward  men." 


SERMON   XXIII. 


ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC. 


Genesis  xxii.  10. 

And  Abraham  stretched  forth  his  hand,  and  took  the  knife  to  slay 

his  son. 

The  appointment  of  this  chapter,  containing  the 
history  of  the  command  to  the  patriarch  Abraham 
to  sacrifice  his  son  Isaac,  to  be  read  as  one  of  the 
lessons  for  this  day,  is  an  evidence  that  our  chureh 
considers  this  event  as  typical  of  that  which  she 
now  commemorates — the  offering  up,  by  the  Al- 
mighty Father,  of  his  only  Son,  as  a  sacrifice  for 
the  sins  of  the  world. 

The  whole  subject  is  suitable  for  our  contempla- 
tions on  this  day. 

Let  us  then  state  the  history ; 

Vindicate  it  from  objections  ;  and 

Urge  the  ends  answered  by  it. 

After  the  lamentable  degeneracy  of  our  first 
parents,  mankind,  following  the  impulse  of  their 
wicked  imaginations,  formed  gods  unto  themselves, 
and  nearly  extinguished  the  knowledge  of  the 
Lord,  the  only  living  and  true  God.  These  wicked 
and  idolatrous  nations  the  Almighty  Ruler  of  the 
world  swept  away  by  a  deluge,  preserving  only 
Noah  and  his  family.  Their  descendants  soon  for- 
got this  mark  of  the  divine  indignation,  and,  like 
their  forefathers  before  the  flood,  departed  from 

Vol.  in.  35 


274  ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC. 

tho  service  of  rho  Maker  of  heMvcn  and  of  eartEv 
But  it  pleased  God,  in  the  exercise  of  infinite  com- 
passion, not  again  to  punislj  the  idolatrous  world. 
He  revealed  his  name  and  his  perfections  to  Abra- 
ham his  servant,  whose  posterity  he  designed  to 
make  his  peculiar  people,  the  depositaries  of  his 
word  and  service,  and  the  centre  from  which  the 
beams  of  divine  truth  might  afterwards  irradiate 
the  nations.  "  The  Lord  seiid  unto  Abraham,  Get 
thee  out  of  thy  country,  and  from  thy  kindred,  and 
from  thy  father's  house,  unto  a  land  that  I  will 
show  thee."" 

In  obedience  to  this  command,  the  pious  patri- 
arch leaves  the  land  of  his  nativity,  encounters  the 
difficulties  of  a  long  and  toilsome  journey,  and, 
under  the  divine  protection,  at  last  dwells  securely 
in  the  land  of  Canaan.  To  him  was  given  the 
glorious  promise,  that  "  in  his  seed  all  the  fimilies 
of  the  earth  should  be  blessed  :"  and  though  the 
blessing  of  the  promised  son  was  long  delayed, 
Abraham  continued  "  strong  in  faith,"  being  fully 
persuaded,  that  what  God  had  promised,  he  was 
able  also  to  perform.  Isaac,  the  son  of  promise, 
was  at  length  given  to  his  ardent  f>rayers :  but 
severe  was  the  trial,  in  regard  to  tiiis  son  of  his^ 
affection,  to  which,  in  infinite  wisdom,  he  was  sub- 
jected. 

God  did  "  tempt"  (that  is,  try)  "  Abraham,  and 
said  unto  him,  Abraham:  and  he  said.  Here  am  I. 
And  God  said.  Take  now  thy  son,  thine  only  son 
Isaac,  whom  thou  lovest,  and  get  thee  into  the 
land  of  Moriah,  and  ofter  him  there  for  a  burnt- 
oftering,  upon  one  of  the  mountains  which  I  will 
tell  thee  of  "f    Every  circumstance  which  rendered 

*  Gen.  xii.  1.  t  Gen.  xxii.  1,  2, 


ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC.  275 

Isaac  peculiarly  dear  to  Abraham  his  father,  is 
here  forcibly  presented.  Isaac,  the  only,  the  be- 
loved son,  the  destined  comfort  of  his  father's  old 
age,  the  son  in  whom  was  wrapped  up  the  gracious 
promise  of  future  blessings  to  the  world,  was  to  bo 
sacrificed  by  the  fond  father.  Exalted  the  faith 
which  repelled  every  murmur,  and  bowed  him  sub- 
missive to  the  severe  command! 

"Rising  up  early  in  the  morning,"  Abraham  pre- 
pares for  his  journey.  Its  purpose,  in  tenderness 
to  the  mother  of  Isaac,  the  patriarch  did  not  com- 
municate to  her  ;  accordingly  the  preparations  which 
were  made  indicated  only  an  intention  to  engage  in 
an  acl  of  worship  by  the  burnt-offering  of  a  lamb. 
Accompanied  by  Isaac,  and  two  young  men  bear- 
ing wood  for  the  sacrifice,  Abraham  set  out  on  his 
journey.  On  the  third  day,  the  place  of  sacrifice 
appears  afar  off:  thither  Abraham  advances  with 
Isaac  only,  on  whom  was  laid  the  wood.  Supposing 
that  the  object  of  their  journey  w.is  to  worship  God 
by  a  burnt-offerinir,  and  therefore  surprised  that  his 
father  had  not  prepared  a  lamb  for  the  purpose,  he 
calls  to  him,  "  My  father,"  and  receives  the  tender 
reply,  "  Here  am  I,  .my  son."  Directing  to  his 
father  his  eager  countenance,  beaming  with  inno- 
cence, affection,  and  piety,  Isaac  solicitously  asks, 
"  Behold  the  fire  and  the  wood,  but  where  is  the 
Jamb  for  the  burnt-offering  f  Heart-rending  ques- 
tion to  the  fond  father!  he  could  not  then  summon 
resolution  to  announce  to  Isaac — Thou,  my  son, 
art  the  victim :  he  piously  directs  the  faith  and 
trust  of  Isaac  to  God — "  My  son,  God  will  provide 
himself  a  lamb  for  a  burnt-offering." 

They  pursue  their  journey — they  come  to  the 
iplace  of  sacrifice ;  the  altar  is  built — the  wood  ie 


276  ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC. 

laid  in  order — Isaac  permits  his  father  to  bind 
him,  and  to  lay  him  on  the  wood.  What  an  ex- 
ample of  holy  SLibmi.>?sion  to  the  will  of  God  !  In 
obedience  to  that  will,  a  son  consents  to  lay  down 
his  life — a  father  prepares  to  be  his  son's  execu- 
tioner. Behold  Abraham  by  the  altar  on  which 
was  laid,  bound,  the  innocent  victim.  Isaac  looks 
to  heaven  for  resignation,  and  then  to  his  father, 
expecting  the  fatal  stroke.  Abraham  stretches 
forth  his  arm  to  plunge  the  knife  into  the  bosom 
of  his  son.  Unsearchable  often  thy  dispensations, 
Almighty  God,  yet  ever  full  of  mercy  ! — delighting 
not  in  human  victims,  thou  didst  arrest  the  blow. 
**  The  angel  of  the  Lord  called  unto  Abraham  out 
of  heaven,  and  said,  "  Abraham,  Abraham ;  and 
he  said.  Here  am  I.  And  he  said.  Lay  not  thine 
hand  upon  the  lad,  neither  do  thou  any  thing  unto 
him  :  for  now  I  know  that  thou  fearest  God,  seeing 
thou  hast  not  withheld  thy  son,  thine  only  son  from 
me."  What  gratitude  and  joy  must  have  cheered 
the  breast  of  the  patriarch !  "  He  lifted  up  his 
eyes,  and  looked,  and  behold  a  ram  caught  in  a 
thicket  by  its  horns :  and  he  went  and  took  the 
ram,  and  offered  him  up  for  a  burnt- offering  instead 
of  his  son." 

It  is  now  our  business  to  vindicate  this  history 
from  objections. 

It  is  asserted  that  God,  who  is  most  merciful, 
just,  and  holy,  could  not  approve,  much  less  re- 
quire, the  unnatural  act  of  a  parent  sacrificing  his 
child.  But  though,  for  wise  and  good  purposes, 
the  Sovereign  Ruler  of  the  universe  required  this 
act  in  the  case  of  Abraham,  he  did  not  permit  it  to 
be  consummated  :  he  restored  Isaac,  the  destined 
victim,  to  the  embrace  of  his  afflicted  father,  with 


ABRAHA3I  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC.  277 

his  virtue  more  exalted,  and  therefore  more  worthy 
of  parental  love,  by  the  noble  fortitude  and  resig- 
nation which  he  had  displayed.  God  restored  him, 
too,  with  renewed  and  gracious  blessings.  "  By 
myself  have  I  sworn,  saith  the  Lord,  for  because 
thou  hast  done  this  thing,  and  hast  not  withheld 
thy  son,  thine  only  son,  from  me,  that  in  blessing  I 
will  bless  thee,  and  in  multiplying  I  will  multiply 
thy  seed  as  the  stars  of  heaven,  and  as  the  sand 
upon  the  sea-shore — and  in  thy  seed  shall  all  the 
families  of  the  earth  be  blessed;  because  thou  hast 
obeyed  my  voice." 

But  if  God  had  required  from  Abraham  the  actual 
sacrifice  of  his  son,  who  will  presume  to  arraign  the 
sovereign  authority  of  the  Creator  over  the  crea- 
tures of  his  hand  \  We  hold  our  life  as  a  free  gift 
from  him,  and  he  may  take  it  away  in  whatever 
mode  and  at  whatever  time  he  pleases,  lie  who 
gave  to  Abraham  the  promised  blessing — a  son,  in 
his  old  age — might  have  required  that,  for  infinitely 
wise  and  good  purposes,  he  should  be  offered  up 
by  his  father,  a  holy  sacrifice  to  the  God  that  made 
him.  Nor  would  this  act  have  authorized  the  bar- 
barous custom  of  the  Heathen  in  immolating  their 
children  on  the  altars  of  their  false  gods.  Theirs 
was  a  superstitious,  unauthorized  homage  to  ima- 
ginary deities,  whom  their  corrupt  fancy  clothed 
with  every  detestable  vice  and  passion.  The  sacri- 
fice of  Isaac  was  an  exalted  act  of  holy  obedience 
to  the  living  God,  the  ever-blessed  Jehovah,  who, 
by  his  visible  presence,  convinced  Abraham  of  the 
reality  of  the  command.  But  let  it  be  remembered 
that  Isaac  was  not  sacrificed,  and  that  the  goodness 
of  God  shines  with  the  brightest  lustre  in  the  glo- 
rious blessings  with  which  he  rewarded  the  faith 


278  ABRAHAM  OFFERING  TIP  ISAAC. 

of  his  servant.  Abraham  considered  the  command, 
not  as  the  mandate  of  an  arbitrary  Sovereij^u,  but 
as  the  requisition  of  a  rii^hteous  and  merciful 
Parent.  He  was  unshaken  in  his  conviction,  that 
however  dark  and  mysterious  was  the  requisition 
to  sacrifice  his  son,  the  reasons  for  it  were  infinitely 
wise  and  good.  This  was  the  fiiith  which  mspired 
Abraham  with  fortitude  and  strength  to  resolve 
to  sacrifice  his  son  :  it  was  a  faith  groumied,  not 
on  the  apparent  reasonableness  of  the  coinniad, 
but  on  his  obligations  and  duty  to  obey  !lie  Al- 
mighty Being,  his  Maker,  Preserver,  and  Benefac- 
tor, who  prescribed  it. 

And  infinitely  wise  and  good  were  the  ends  ac- 
complished by  the  command  to  Abraham  to  sacrifice 
his  son. 

I.  The  faith  of  the  holy  patriarch  was  thus  con- 
firmed and  exalted. 

The  merit  of  obedience  is  always  in  proportion 
to  the  number  and  greatness  of  the  obstacles  to  be 
overcome.  That  faith  which  overcomes  the  strong- 
est principles  of  human  nature,  and  the  most  tender 
feelings  of  the  heart,  is  the  most  ex^dted  and  me- 
ritorious. Such  was  the  faith  of  Abraham,  evi- 
<^lenced  by  his  readiness  to  sacrifice  his  son.  He 
bound  his  tenderly-beloved  son  on  the  altar — he 
made  bare  the  bosom  in  wliich  to  plunge  the  knife. 
More  entire  submission  to  the  will  of  God,  founded 
on  confidence  in  his  divine  perfections  and  his 
right  to  command,  could  not  be  exhibited,  than 
that  which  was  here  displayed.  Jehovah  himself 
set  his  seal  to  the  faith  and  virtue  of  his  servant — 
"Now  I  know  that  thou  fearest  God,  seeing  thou 
liast  not  withheld  thy  son,  thine  only  son,  from  me." 


ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC*.  27§> 

II.  By  this  command  to  Abraham  he  became  an 
instructive  and  glorious  example  to  the  people  of 
God  in  all  future  ages. 

Piety  and  virtue  shed  instruction  and  pleasure 
on  all  who  behold  tliem  ;  they  live  in  the  benefits 
which  they  have  diffused,  and  in  the  unworthy 
whom  they  may  have  reclaimed,  long  after  their 
posses-sor  is  numbered  with  the  dead  ;  and  they 
live  in  the  sacred  page  ot  history,  to  instruct,  re- 
prove, and  reform  the  latest  generations.  Happy, 
then,  the  man,  whose  virtue,  eminently  tried,  and 
therefore  eminently  illustrious,  becomes  an  instruc- 
tive and  blessed  example  to  the  world  !  Severe 
was  the  sacrifice  which  Abraham  was  called  to 
make;  but  his  holy  submission,  his  unreserved 
obedience,  his  vigorous  and  unshaken  faith,  have 
not  only  made  him  eternally  blessed,  but  have  ex- 
alted him  at  the  head  of  the  faithful  servants  of  the 
living  God  ;  and  his  example  the  servants  of  God, 
in  all  ages,  are  called  to  imitate.     But, 

III.  By  this  trial  of  his  faith,  both  he  and  his 
posterity  had  a  lively  view  and  assurance  of  the 
plan  of  redemption  through  the  promised  Messiah. 

Among  the  nations  of  the  East,  it  was  common 
t-o  communicate  information  by  signs  and  actions 
expressive  of  things  and  events.  Many  instances 
of  this  language  of  signs  occur  in  the  Old  Testa- 
ment, particularly  in  the  prophetic  books.  When 
Isaiah  was  to  foretell  the  captivity  of  Egypt  and 
Ethiopia,  he  loosed  the  sackcloth  from  off  his  loins, 
and  put  oft'  the  shoe  from  his  foot,  and  walked 
naked,  (that  is,  without  the  rough  garments  which 
the  prophets  wore  ;)  by  this  expressive  action  de- 
claring that  the  Ethiopians  and  Egyptians  should 


280  ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC. 

be  led  captive,  and  barefoot.     To  denote  the  sub- 
jection into  which  God  would  bring  the   nations 
whom  Nebuchadnezzar  would  conquer,  the  prophet 
Jeremiah  made  bonds,  and  put  them  on  his  neck. 
And  among  a  variety  of  instances,  more  common 
in  Ezekiei  than  in  any  of  the  other  prophets,  to 
denote  the  captivity  of  Israel,  he  was  directed  by 
God  to  bring  out  the  furniture  of  his  house  in  the 
sight  of  all  the  people,  signifying  that  in  this  man- 
ner they  should  be  removed,  and  go  into  captivity. 
This  language  of  signs,  indeed,  was  common  among 
the  Eastern  nations,  from  the  earliest  times.     The 
Deity  therefore,  who,  in  a  revelation  to  any  person 
or  people,  would  adopt  that  mode  which  would  be 
most  expressive  and  intelligible,  in  order  to  inform 
Abraham  and  his  posterity  of  the  plan  of  redemp- 
tion through  the  death  of  the  promised  seed,  com- 
manded the  patriarch  to  sacrifice  his  son.     By  this 
transaction  the   mystery   of  redemption   was  laid 
open  to  the  view  of  the  patriarch.    The  poignancy 
of  his  own  feelings  when  about  to  sacrifice  Isaac, 
would   assist  him  to   form   some  estimate  of  the 
surpassing  love  of  God  to  man,  by  giving  up,  to 
suffering  and   death,  his  only-begotten  and  well- 
beloved  Son.     In  the  resignation  and  submission 
of  the  innocent  Isaac  were   portrayed   the  meek 
readiness  and  patience  with  which   the  Lamb  of 
God  sustained  the  griefs  and  carried  the  sorrows 
of  guilty  man.     Isaac  bore  the  wood  on  which  he 
was  bound  a  victim :  Jesus  carried  the  cross  on 
which  he  suffered  an  atoning  sacrifice  for  sin.     In 
the  restoration  of  Isaac  as  it  were  from  the  dead, 
was  prefigured  the  resurrection  of  Christ  from  the 
grave,  after  having  expiated  sin.     And  in  the  gra- 
cious blessing  which  God  bestowed  upon  Isaac, 


ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC.  28T 

was  denoted  his  merciful  acceptance  of  the  com- 
plete sacrifice  which  the  Messiah  would  make  for 
the  sins  of  the  world.  In  the  mournful  scene  which 
wrung  the  heart  of  the  patriarch,  he  beheld  the 
glorious  plan  of  redemption  through  the  promised 
Messiah — that  redemption  which  was  faintly  fore- 
told in  the  promise,  that  the  seed  of  the  woman 
should  bruise  the  head  of  the  serpent.  In  the  bitter 
grief  and  agony  which  the  giving  up  of  his  own  son 
occasioned,  the  astonishing  goodness  of  God,  in 
sparing  not  the  Son  of  his  bosom,  appeared  worthy 
of  unutterable  praise  and  love. 

It  was  not  to  Abraham  only  that  the  command 
to  sacrifice  Isaac  displayed  the  plan  and  mystery 
of  redemption :  it  was  handed  down,  as  a  type  and 
assurance  of  that  event,  to  the  nation  of  the  Jews: 
and  to  us,  at  this  day,  it  is  in  some  measure  an  evi- 
dence that  the  promised  Messiah,  thus  typified  in 
Isaac,  has  indeed  visited  us  in  Christ  the  Lord. 

Let  us  learn  from  this  history, 

1.  To  adore  the  goodness  of  God  in  the  trial  of 
his  servants. 

He  tried  the  faith  of  Abraham,  that  it  might  be- 
come more  exalted  and  illustrious.  He  tries  the 
faith  of  his  servants,  in  every  age,  with  the  same 
gracious  purpose.  It  is  not  to  sport  with  the  crea- 
tures of  his  hand,  or  to  display  his  resistless  sove- 
reignty and  power,  that  he  assails  us  with  calamity 
— that  he  separates  from  us  those  most  dear  to  us 
— that  he  often  places  us  in  situations  most  critical 
and  trying.  No;  "  like  as  a  father  pitieth  his  chil- 
dren, so  the  Lord  pitieth  those  that  fear  him."  It 
is  to  purify  his  people  from  the  dross  of  infirmity 
and  sin,  and  to  perfect  them  in  that  holy  and  entire 
subjection  to  his  will,  which  is  their  highest  happi- 

VoL.  III.  3« 


282  ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC. 

iiess — it  is  that  their  faith,  vanquishing  every  ene- 
my, and  triumphing  over  every  temptation,  may 
finally  obtain  a  crown  of  glory  that  shall  never  fade 
away — that  ho  tries  them  sometimes  "  seven  times 
in  the  fire."  What  force  and  propriety,  then,  in 
the  exhortation  of  the  apostle — "  Count  it  all  joy, 
brethren,  when  ye  fall  into  divers  temptations ; 
knowing  this,  that  the  trial  of  your  faith  worketh 
patience.  But  let  patience  have  her  perfect  work, 
that  ye  may  be  perfect  and  entire,  wanting  no- 
thing." 

2.  Let  us  learn  to  adore  the  goodness  of  God  in 
the  aids  and  motives  to  virtue  which  he  affords  us 
in  the  example  of  holy  men. 

Precepts,  however  strong  and  animating,  speak 
not  to  the  heart  with  that  persuasion  and  energy 
as  example.  Religion  is  displayed,  in  example,  in 
all  her  dignity  and  sweetness.  When  we  contem- 
plate her  as  portrayed  by  the  sacred  writers,  as 
delineated  in  the  law  of  God,  she  appears  in  such 
perfection  and  purity,  that  we  may  be  led  to  sup- 
pose that  she  does  not  leave  heaven,  her  blest 
abode,  to  dwell  among  frail  and  sinful  mortals. 
But  when  we  contemplate  the  examples,  exhibited 
in  Scripture,  of  holy  men,  we  are  induced  to  ac- 
knowledge that  religion  was  designed  for  man,  as 
his  perfection  and  happiness ;  that  truly  she  "  re- 
joiceth  in  the  habitable  parts  of  the  earth,  and  her 
deligiits  are  with  the  sons  of  men."  By  these  holy 
men  the  law  of  God  was  fulfilled  in  its  extent  and 
purity,  and  his  statutes  rejoiced  their  hearts.  We 
see  those  who,  "  through  faith,  subdued  kingdoms, 
wrought  righteousness,  obtained  promises."  And 
what  they  have  done  by  the  grace  of  God,  we  can 
^0  also.     "  Encompassed  by  so  great  a  cloud  of 


ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC.  285 

witnesses,"  it  behoves  us  "to  lay  aside  every  weight, 
and  the  sin  that  doth  so  easily  beset  us,  and  to  run 
with  patience  the  race  which  is  set  before  us."* 
We  have  reason  then  to  praise  God,  that,  to  the 
holy  instructions  of  his  word,  the  awful  calls  of  his 
threatenings,  the  enlivening  influences  of  his  pro- 
mises, the  invigorating  and  quickening  operations 
of  his  Spirit,  he  has  added  the  animating  example 
of  the  faithful,  to  "  awaken  us  from  the  death 
of  sin  to  the  life  of  righteousness,"  and  to  di- 
rect, strengthen,  and  console  us  in  our  Christian 
course. 

But  let  us  remember,  that,  without  the  virtues  of 
the  faithful  servants  of  God,  we  cannot  expect  to 
inherit  their  reward  :  let  us  remember,  that  theirs 
were  lives  of  ardent  devotion,  triumphant  faith, 
and  holy  resignation.  The  same  glorious  perfec- 
tion of  piety  is  attainable  by  us.  Yes  ;  exalted  as 
was  the  faith  of  Abraham,  it  is  required  of  every 
Christian,  not  in  the  particular  instance  to  sacrifice 
an  only  son,  but  in  an  entire  surrender  of  his  will, 
his  aflections,  and  his  whole  life,  to  the  holy  will 
of  God.  Studying  and  meditating  on  the  example 
of  the  faithful,  and  excited  by  the  grace  of  God  to 
a  holy  emulation  of  them,  after  being  made  perfect 
through  faith  and  patience,  we  shall  be  thought 
meet  to  sit  down  with  Abraham,  Isaac,  and  Jacob, 
in  the  kingdom  of  God. 

3.  Let  us,  in  unreserved  trust  and  submission  to 
God,  receive  with  humility  whatever  he  has  re- 
vealed. 

This  was  the  conduct  of  Abraham.  When  he 
received  the  command  to  sacrifice  Isaac,   he  did 

*  Ileb.  xii.  1, 


^84  Abraham  offering  up  isaac, 

not  hesitate,  but  instantly  prepared  to  obey.     "  It 
is  the  Lord,  let  him  do  what  seemeth  to  him  good," 
was  doubtless  his  Innijuaffe.     Worthy  his  conduct 
of  our  imitation  !     That  pride  of  reason  which  re- 
jects every  truth  that  cannot  be  measured  by  its 
imperfect  standard,   is  reconcileable  neither  with 
the   modesty   and   sincerity   of  the   inquirer   after 
truth,  nor  with  the  humility  and  piety  of  the  Chris- 
tian.    Impressed  with  a  sense  of  the  imperfection 
and  frailty  of  reason,  and  firndy  trusting  in  the  un- 
searchable wisdom   and   infinite  goodness  of  the 
Maker  and  Ruler  of  the  universe,  let  us  believe 
with    humility   whatever    God    has    revealed,    and 
obey,  without  a  murmur,  whatever  he  commands. 
He  is  our  heavenly  Father  and  Friend  ;  he  has  re- 
vealed as  much  as  is  for  our  present  good  to  know; 
he  suffers  no  evil  nor  care  to  assail  us  which  is  not 
designed  in  tender  mercy ;  his  goodness,  therefore, 
should  lead  us  to  repentance,  and  to  devote  our- 
selves to  his  service.     Then  we  may  cherish  that 
full  confidence  in  his  favour  which  will  light   up 
comfort  in  the  darkest  night  of  sorrow.     It  was 
this  confidence  which  cheered  and  animated  the 
patriarch  Abraham   in   the   severe   trial  which  he 
was  called  to  sustain.     Let  us  love  and  obey  God, 
and  all  things  shall  work  together  for  our  good. 
The   sorrows  and   trials  of  this  mortal  life  shall 
soon  pass  away,  and  we  shall  enter  on  the  fulness 
of  bliss  in  God's  presence. 

Finally.  Let  us  endeavour,  from  this  history, 
to  estimate  the  infinite  love  of  God  towards  us,  in 
giving  up  liis  only-begotten  and  well-beloved  Son 
to  suffering  and  death  for  our  redemption. 

Infinitely  removed  indeed  is  Jehovah,  the  eternal 
Spirit,  from  human  passions ;  but  every  virtuous 


ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC.  28^ 

affection  exists  in  him,  in  a  perfection,  purity,  and 
strength  inconceivable  by  us.  Inconceivably  per- 
fect, pure,  and  strong,  therefore,  was  the  love 
which,  in  the  incomprehensible  Godhead,  subsisted 
between  the  Father  and  the  Son;  yet  this  Son 
God  the  Father  gave,  not  to  take  upon  him  the 
nature  of  angels,  but  of  fallen  man — gave,  not  to 
ease,  and  splendour,  and  power,  but  to  pain,  suf- 
fering, and  death,  for  us  and  our  salvation.  Well 
may  this  be  considered  as  an  evidence  of  the  sur- 
passing love  of  God  for  us ;  well  may  the  apostle 
say — "  God  so  loved  the  world,  as  to  give  his  only- 
begotten  Son."  Let  us  then  with  reverence  labour 
to  conceive  what  were  the  holy  emotions  of  the 
ever-blessed  God,  when  he  gave  up  his  only  Son 
to  the  bitter  agonies  of  the  cross.  In  the  case  of 
Isaac,  death  was  the  penalty  which  he  must  sustain 
as  a  sinner;  but  the  Son  of  God,  who  knew  no  sin, 
sustained  this  penalty.  The  death  which  Isaac  was 
called  to  sustain,  was  not  a  death  of  ignominy,  nor 
of  more  than  ordinary  pain;  but  the  death  of  Christ 
was  that  of  the  vilest  malefactor,  aggravated  by  in- 
sults, and  scoffs,  and  reviling — it  was  a  death  em- 
bittered by  the  sense  of  the  sins  of  the  whole  world 
— by  the  dereliction  of  his  Father's  presence  and 
favour:  yet  to  this  death  did  God  the  Father  give 
his  only  Son — this  death  did  the  Son,  partaker  of 
the  glory  of  the  Godhead,  sustain — and  let  it  be 
remembered — -for  us.  Human  conception  fails  fully 
to  realize  this  mystery  of  infinite  love.  But  how 
aggravated  must  be  the  guilt,  how  dreadful  the 
condemnation  of  those  that  disregard  it — that  neg"- 
lect  a  salvation  prompted  by  the  love  of  God  the 
Father,  wrought  by  the  love  of  God  the  Son  !    To 


286  ABRAHAM  OFFERING  UP  ISAAC. 

Him,  then,  that  loved  us,  and  gave  himself  for  us, 
let  us,  in  the  devotion  of  our  hearts  and  the  obedi- 
ence of  our  lives,  as  well  as  in  the  homage  of  our 
lips,  ascribe  all  honour,  and  praise,  and  glory,  for 
ever  and  ever. 


SERMON   XXIV. 


THE  LAMB  OF  GOD. 


Isaiah  liii.  7. 
He  is  brought  as  a  lamb  to  the  slaughter. 

The  striking  and  appropriate  terms  in  which  the 
prophet  Isaiah  depicts  the  character  and  offices  of 
the  Messiah,  have  procured  for  him,  by  way  of 
eminence,  the  title  of  the  Evangelical  Prophet. 
He  exhibits  a  glowing  but  faithful  picture  of  the 
character  of  Christ,  and  all  the  humiliating  and  all 
the  triumphant  events  of  his  life.  In  the  bhapter 
which  contains  my  text,  the  prophet  has  dipped  his 
pencil  in  the  softest  colours,  and  draws  a  portrait 
of  the  Saviour,  which,  while  it  conveys  to  us  the 
most  exalted  ideas  of  his  character,  is  calculated 
to  awaken  our  tenderest  and  liveliest  sympathy. 

Let  us  then  contemplate  the  character  of  Christ, 
as  delineated  by  the  prophet  under  the  emblem  of 
"  a  lamb  brought  to  the  slaughter,"  that  our  peni- 
tence may  be  awakened,  our  gratitude  enlivened, 
and  our  souls  warmed  with  the  ardent  emotions  of 
love  and  duty. 

Under  the  character  of  a  "  lamb  brought  to  the 
slaughter,"  we  are  led  to  consider, 

The  mnoccnce  of  Christ ; 

His  tenderness  and  compassion ; 

H  is  patience ; 

And,  finally,  to  consider  him  as  the  victim  for 
our  sins. 


^8  THE  LAMB  OF  GOD. 

1.  We  are  led  to  consider  his  innocence. 

Pure  was  that  spirit  which  envy  never  corroded^ 
whit  h  malice  never  inflamed,  which  pride  never 
agitated,  which  deceit  never  contaminated,  which 
lust  never  corritpted.  "  A  lamb"  indeed  was  he, 
*'  without  blemish  and  without  spot  "  His  God- 
head sanctified  his  human  nature,  and  purified  it 
from  all  the  stains  of  sin.  His  soul  glowed  inno- 
cent  and  pure  as  the  glory  which  emanates  from 
the  infinite  Source  of  all  perfection.  No  reproaches, 
no  insults,  no  persecutions  could  move  him  from 
his  steadfast  purposes  of  love,  or  excite  any  dispo- 
sitions but  tiiose  of  compassion.  Abuse  and  injury 
served  but  to  inflame  the  fervour  of  his  love,  even 
for  those  who  thus  requited  his  benevolent  exer- 
tions. No  homfige  could  rouse  his  ambition,  no 
persecutions  excite  his  revenge.  Uncontaminated 
by  any  vengeful  passion,  his  soul  was  the  seat  of 
innocence  and  peace.  He  passed  through  the 
world  sedulous  and  faithful  in  the  discharge  of  all 
its  duties,  mixing  with  its  most  busy  circles,  but 
infinitely  removed  from  the  influeiice  of  its  vices 
and  its  corrupting  pleasures.  That  life  could  not 
be  otherwise  than  innocent,  which  was  supremely 
and  uniformly  devoted  to  the  disinterested  purpose 
of  advancing  the  temporal  and  eternal  interests  of 
those  he  came  to  save. 

And  how  pure  and  renovating  the  laivs  which 
he  enjoined ! — calculated,  by  the  exalted  virtues 
which  they  enforce,  to  restore  us  to  tlie  innocence 
and  virtue  of  heaven. 

Behold  then  the  Lamb  of  God,  clothed  with  in- 
^ocencc  celestial  and  divine,  infusing  into  his  life, 
and  into  his  precepts,  the  purity  which  glowed  in 
^is  own  immaculate  soul.   Most  worthy  is  he  surely 


^HE  LAMB  OF  GOD.  289 

of  our  admiration,  our  esteem,  our  ardent  love. 
What  excuse  can  there  be  for  the  apathy  which 
beholds  with  indifference  this  exalted  worth?  What 
can  save  from  the  stigma  of  hardened  impiety,  the 
heart  which  views  with  indifference  or  contempt 
the  infinitely  pure  and  exalted  innocence  of  the 
Lamb  of  God  I 

And  yet  this  is  the  condition  of  sinners.  They 
regard  the  holy  Jesus,  whose  character  should 
awaken  h11  the  emotions  of  esteem  and  love,  with 
indifference.  They  bestow  on  the  character  of  him 
who,  in  every  pure  and  holy  attril)ute,  infinitely 
transcends  all  human  excellence,  perhaps  not  a 
moment's  thought.  They  hear  this  immaculate 
Lamb  of  God  profaned  and  contemned  without 
emotion,  and  even  unite  in  the  unholy  profanation. 
Perhaps  by  his  innocent  and  sacred  name  they 
seal  their  thoughtless  and  frivolous  assertions,  or 
impious  falsehoods.  He  who.se  exalted  and  disin- 
terested virtue,  whose  inoffensive  and  spotless  in- 
nocence should  aw  iken  their  most  ardent  and  ten- 
der feelings,  possesses  no  place  in  their  thoughts, 
no  share  in  their  affections.  They  reproach  him, 
they  insult  him,  they  put  him  to  an  open  shame  by 
their  irregular  and  vicious  life.  Oh  !  the  immacu- 
late innocence  of  the  Lamb  of  God  awfully  aggra- 
vates the  guilt  of  those  who  thus  neglect  and 
despise  him. 

The  emblem  under  which  the  prophet  represents 
the  Messiah,  leads  us  to  contemplate, 

2.  His  tenderness  and  compassion. 

Behold  him  ever  engaged  in  alleviating  and  re- 
moving human  misery,  and  delighting  to  gladden 
the  hearts  which  sorrow  and  affliction  had  smittea* 

Vol.  in.  S7 


'i90  THE  LAMB  OF  GOD. 

Hear  him,  by  reproof,  by  warning,  by  affectionate 
persuasion,  seeking  to  awaken  and  reclaim  secure 
and  obdurate  sinners      See  him  weeping  over  that 
impenitence  which  resisted  his  importunate  solici- 
tations.     Hear   him    pressing,    in   tlic   accents    of 
mercy,  penitent  mourners  to  come  unto  him,  and 
be  partakers  of  his  peace.    Behold  hitn  always  for- 
getting his  own  sufferings,  in  the  prosecution  of 
his  benevolent  work  of  effecting  the  redemption  of 
man,  and  at  the  moment  so  awful  to  frail  nature, 
when  his  soul  was  sinking  in  a  dark  and  terrible 
death,  forgetting  his  bitter  agonies  in  the  prayer 
for  the  pardon  of  his  murderers. 

And  in  this  infinite  tenderness  and  compassion 
of  the  Saviour,  the  Lamb  of  God,  does  there  appear 
no  claim  on  our  gratitude  and  love,  no  reproach  on 
that  insensibility  which  disregards  or  contemns  his 
infinite  compassion  I 

Was  it  an  austere,  cruel,  and  unmerciful  Judge 
against  whom  we  rebelled — did  a  Master  claim  our 
service,  who  had  evidenced  no  wish  for  our  happi- 
ness, and  conferred  no  favours  upon  us — our  neg- 
lect and  disregard  might  find  some  excuse.  But  to 
remain  unaffected  by  the  infinite  tenderness  of  the 
Lamb  of  God — to  reject  mercy  forced  on  us  by  the 
earnest  and  affectionate  persuasions  of  our  com- 
passionate Lord — to  disregard  and  contemn  that 
merciful  Redeemer  who  is  constantly  imploring 
blessings  upon  us,  and  warding  ofi\,  by  his  inter- 
cessions, the  stroke  of  incensed  justice — is  a  tre- 
mendous guilt,  which  no  excuses  can  palliate,  and 
which  human  colouring  cannot  aggravate. 

In  the  emblem  of  the  lamb  led  to  the  slaughter, 
iv.e  are  called  to  view. 


THE  LA^IB  OF  GOD.  291 

3.  The  patience  of  the  Saviour- 
Patience  which  bore  without  miirniiiring  a  series 
of  reproaches,  persecutions,  and  sufferings,  more 
severe  and  painful  than  human  imagination  can 
conceive — patience  which  sustained  unexampled 
injuries  and  insults  with  meek  resignation,  and  re- 
turned them  with  blessings  instead  of  revilings — 
patience  which  now  bears  with  the  provocations 
and  scorn  of  sinners,  still  offering  them  pardon, 
still  interceding  for  them,  still  beseeching  them  to 
be  reconciled  unto  God.  Yes;  the  patient  Lamb 
of  God  endured  the  most  agonizing  sufferings  with 
the  humble  prayer  of  resignation — "  The  cup  which 
my  Father  hath  given  me,  shall  I  not  drink  it  f* 
"  Father,  not  my  will,  but  thine  be  done."f  He 
always  implored  blessings  on  the  persecuting  hand 
that  smote  him ;  and  even  now,  seated  in  the  hea- 
vens as  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords,  he 
answers  the  contempt,  the  blasphemies,  the  scorn 
of  impenitent  sinners,  with  offers  of  his  mercy  and 
his  grace. 

Behold  him  then  the  patient  Lamb  of  God,  and 
let  us  ask  ourselves,  what  a  debt  of  gratitude  do 
we  owe  to  that  patience  which  encountered  such 
severe  sufferings  for  our  sakes,  and  which  could 
not  be  intimidated  from  the  consummation  of  the 
glorious  work  of  our  redemption  by  the  awful  suf- 
ferings and  agonies  which  were  to  mark  its  close  I 
To  what  but  to  the  long-suffering  patience  of  the 
Lamb  of  God,  as  our  Mediator  and  Intercessor,  do 
we  owe  the  day  of  grace  which  we  now  enjoy,  our 
escape  from  the  punishments  which  our  sins  have 
merited,  and  the  access  which  is  permitted  us  to 
the  throne  of  our  Almighty  Sovereign  and  Judge  I 

*  John  xviii.  11.  i  Luke  xxii.  42. 


,^92  THE  LAMB  OF  COD. 

Behold  then  Jesus,  the  Lamb  of  God,  innocent  and 
tender,  siistaiiiins  the  burden  of  our  sins — suffer- 
ing the  most  severe  pnins  of  poverty,  contempt, 
and  persecution — assailed  by  the  revilings,  the 
bnfft'tings,  the  scourffinjrs  of  unfeeling  and  wicked 
men — and  not  a  murmur  escapes  from  him.  He 
bears  the  accumulated  sufferings  whi<  h  pressed 
iJ{»on  him,  with  composure,  with  cheerfulness,  with 
ardour — bears  them,  not  to  obtain  blessings  for 
himself,  but  to  effect  the  deliverance  and  salvation 
of  sinful  Juan.  And  shall  we,  whose  sins  caused 
these  sufferings,  we,  who  are  the  subjects  of  all 
these  blessings,  behold  this  exalted  exhibition  of 
disinterested  patience  without  being  overwhelmed 
with  the  emotions  of  gratitude  for  his  patient  and 
enduring  love,  without  being  penetrated  with  com- 
punction for  our  transgressions^     For, 

4.  He  was  the  "  Lamb  brought  to  the  slaughter," 
the  atoning  mctim  for  our  sins. 

He  was  that  Lamb  without  spot  and  without  ble- 
mish, on  whom  were  laid  the  iniquities  of  us  all— ■ 
the  true  Paschal  Lamb,  whose  blood,  sprinkled  on 
the  soul  by  faith,  saves  us  from  the  wrath  of  eter- 
nal justice.  Of  this  divine  Lamb,  the  lambs  offered 
in  sacrifice  in  the  Jewish  law  were  all  typical. 
Front  the  merits  of  the  precious  blood  of  this  Limb, 
once  shed  for  many,  the  legal  sacrifices,  by  antici- 
pation, derived  all  their  atoning  efficacy. 

Considering  Christ  as  a  sacrifice  for  sin,  how 
appropriate  his  appellation  of  the  Lamb  of  God  ! 
Fure  from  the  stains  of  guilt,  possessing,  not  merely 
spotless,  but  divine  innocence,  infinitely  availing  is 
the  sacrifice  of  his  death.  As  the  Lamb  of  God, 
^esus  was  indeed  led  to  the  slaughter:  he  was 


THE  LAMB  OF  GOD.  293 

wounded  for  our  sins,  he  was  bruised  for  our  ini- 
quities. Innocent  and  holy,  he  sulfcrs  for  offences 
not  his  own.  His  blood  teas  shed  for  ws — aod 
shall  it  be  in  vain]  His  atoning  sacrifice  for  our 
sins  is  ali-siiffi'ient — and  shall  we  refuse  to  avail 
ourselves  of  this  inestimable  benefit!  Exposed  to 
the  just  displeasure  of  our  Almighty  Sovereign, 
shall  we  cast  from  us  that  atoning  blood  which,  in 
his  myslericius  but  merciful  appointment,  seals  our 
pardon  I  Defiled  by  iniquity,  shall  we  reject  that 
precious  blood  which  is  infinitely  powerful  to 
«Ieanse  us  from  all  sin  l 

Behold,  then,  impenitent  sinners!  behold  the 
Lamb  of  God,  the  sacrifice  for  your  sins,  and  be 
affected  with  a  deep  sense  of  their  guilt  and  enor- 
mity, be  penetrated  with  lively  contrition  for  them. 
Let  gratitude  for  his  infinite  compassion  be  united 
with  the  emotions  of  penitence.  Let  the  humble 
but  fervent  exercises  of  holy  faith  be  excited  by 
the  prevailing  efficacy  of  his  precious  blood.  Be- 
hold the  Lamb  of  God  which  taketh  away  the  sin 
of  the  world — behold  him  with  the  eye  of  peniten- 
tial, and  lively,  and  holy  faith,  and  receive  rest  to. 
your  souls. 

Christians,  let  the  Lamb  of  God  be  ever  before 
you,  the  object  of  your  contemplations,  the  source 
of  your  penitence,  the  theme  of  your  praises,  the 
pattern  of  your  conduct.  While  from  the  myste- 
rious but  all  powerful  efficacy  of  his  blood  you 
derive  your  pardon,  your  qualifications  for  eternal 
felicity  must  consist  in  your  conformity  to  the  meek 
and  holy  graces  which  he  possessed.  If  you  have 
not  his  spirit,  you  are  none  of  his. 

Remember,  this  Lamb  of  God  was  i7inocent  and 
holy,  infinitely  removed  from  all  sin.     Be  ye  thes 


294  THE  LAMB  OF  GOD. 

perfect,  even  as  he  was  perfect.  Carry  with  you, 
as  the  constant  pattern  of  your  conduct,  his  blame- 
less life.  Strive  to  act,  in  every  situation,  as  you 
think  your  pure  and  inoffensive  Redeemer  would 
have  acted.  Be,  like  him,  wholly  separate  from 
sin.  Followers  of  a  Master  so  innocent,  avoid 
even  the  appearance  of  evil  ;  and  cherish,  by  the 
aids  of  his  Holy  Spirit,  those  divine  virtues  which 
will  assimilate  you  to  his  image,  and  fit  you  to  be 
partakers  of  his  everlasting  glories. 

Behold  his  tenderness — and  remember,  your  tem- 
pers and  dispositions  must  be  like  his.  Disciples 
of  a  Redeemer  whose  soul  glowed  with  infinite 
compassion,  who  was  constantly  engaged  in  alle- 
viating human  misery,  whose  gentle  spirit  never 
caused  a  moment's  unnecessary  pain,  whose  com- 
passionate voice  was  ever  seeking  to  sooth  and 
comfort  the  afflicted,  who,  in  the  exercise  of  mercy 
unequalled  and  infinite,  poured  forth  his  soul  unto 
death  for  the  sinful  and  rebellious  race  of  man — 
with  this  bright  and  exalted  pattern  of  tenderness 
and  mercy  before  you,  how  great  will  be  your  guilt. 
Christians,  if  you  cherish  a  harsh,  unkind,  and  un- 
forgiving spirit !  Let  the  tender  compassion  of  your 
Lord  dwell  in  your  hearts.  His  tender  compassion 
for  you  bore  him  through  all  his  unexampled  suf- 
ferings, and  sustained  him  upon  the  cross.  No 
return  that  you  can  make  can  be  in  any  degree 
adequate  to  this  love.  He  demands  of  you  that 
you  exercise  tenderness  and  compassion  towards 
your  brethren.  Prove,  then,  by  your  meek  and 
gentle  tempers,  by  your  active  and  disinterested 
zeal  in  alleviating  and  comforting  human  sorrow, 
that  you  are  indeed  the  true  disciples  of  the  Lamb 
of  God. 


THE  LAMB  OF  GOD.  295 

Behold  his  patience.  Can  more  bitter  revilings, 
more  piercing  injuries,  more  severe  persecutions, 
or  deeper  sufferings,  assail  you  than  those  which 
he  sustained,  not  only  without  a  murmur,  but  in 
the  exercise  of  the  most  exalted  acts  of  kind- 
ness towards  his  persecutors  1  Christians,  when 
disposed  to  resent  the  revilings,  injuries,  and  per- 
secutions to  which  you  are  exposed,  look  to  your 
reviled  and  persecuted,  but  forgiving  Lord.  When 
fretful  and  impatient  under  distress  and  affliction, 
seat  yourselves  at  the  foot  of  the  cross  of  your 
Redeemer,  and  learn  resignation  from  the  suffering 
but  patient  Lamb  of  God. 

Finally.     Behold  him  the  victim  for  your  sins. 

Here,  Christians,  is  the  source  of  your  most  ex- 
alted hopes,  and  your  most  important  duties.  The 
Victim  for  your  sins  is  all-sufficient :  the  mysteri- 
ous blood  of  the  Lamb  of  God,  shed  upon  the  cross, 
has  appeased  the  wrathful  claims  of  divine  justice. 
United  to  this  divine  and  Almighty  Saviour  by  a 
true  and  living  faith,  you  have  not  any  thing  to  fear 
from  the  demands  of  that  divine  law  which  you  have 
violated.  Your  souls  are  at  peace ;  and  through  the 
power  of  your  Saviour's  merits  and  grace,  you  can 
call  God  y^our  Father.  Ascribe  all  the  glory  and 
praise  of  these  exalted  blessings  to  that  Lamb  of 
God  which  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world.  Keep 
steadily  in  view  the  cross  on  which  he  suffered,  the 
victim  for  your  sins.  Behold  there  your  guilt  in  the 
infinite  sacrifice  that  atoned  for  it,  and  be  penitent 
and  humble.  Let  the  wonders  of  redeeming  mercy 
which  it  displays,  awaken  your  love,  inflame  your 
gratitude,  strengthen  and  animate  your  holy  zeal. 
Derive  from  the  cross,  on  which  the  Lamb  of  God 


296  THE  LAMB  OP  GOD. 

made  full  atonement  for  your  sin,  all  your  consola- 
tions and  your  hopes  for  time  and  eternity.  God 
forbid  that  I  should  glory  save  in  the  cross  of  our 
Lord  Jesus  Christ. 

Under  the  symbols  of  the  bread  broken  and  the 
wine  poured  out  upon  the  altar,  you  may  behold 
tlie  Lamb  of  God  bruised  and  slain  for  your  sms. 
And  the  church  calls  you,  on  the  approaching  fes- 
tival that  commemorates  the  resurrection  of  Him 
who  once  died,  but  now  liveth  for  ever,  to  celebrate 
the  infinite  condescensions  of  his  love.     You  are 
called   spiritually   to   feed,   by  lively  faith,   on   his 
l)o<'y  broken  and  blood  shed,  that  you  may  partake 
of  his  mercy,  and  be  nourished  by  his  grace  unto 
evcrli)stin<^   life.      Seated    at  the   table    which   his 
mercy   s[)reads,   as   an   all-sufficient  and   merciful 
Rjsleeuier,  Jesus  addresses  the  accents  of  tender 
compassion — "  Ho,  every  one  that  tliirsteth,  come 
ye  to  the  waters,  and  he  that  hath  no  money;  come 
ye,  buy,  and  eat;  yea,  come,  buy  wine  and  milk 
without  money  and  without  price."*   Brethren,  the 
invitation  is  addressed  to  you  ;  for,  sinful,  guilty, 
and   doomed   to  death,  from   the   divine   fountain 
only,  which  is  opened  ia  the  merits  and  grace  of 
the  Lord  Jesus  Christ,  can  you  derive  health,  and 
salvation,  anti  life.     Place  then  your  trust  in  him, 
as  that  Lamb  of  God  which  laketh  away  the  sin  of 
the  world.     Faithfully  devoting  yourselves  to  his 
service,  you   shall   enjoy   the   consolations  of  his 
tnercy,  and  the  unf  uling  and  almighty  protection 
of  his  grace ;  and  finally  you  shall  be  admitted  to 
the  kingdom  of  the  once-suflfering,  but  now  highly 
exalted  and  triumphant  {Saviour;  and  there,  with 

*  Isaiah  ly.  1» 


THE  LAMB  OP  GOD.  297 

angels  and  archangels,  and  all  the  company  of 
heaven,  celebrate  the  everlasting  festival  of  love ; 
ascribing  blessing,  and  honour,  and  glory,  and 
power  to  him  that  sitteth  upon  the  throne,  and  to 
the  Lamb  tliat  was  slain  to  redeem  you  by  his 
bloodo 


Vol.  Ill  38 


SERMON    XXV. 


THE  CONTEST  AND  VICTORY  OF  EMMANUEL 


Isaiah  Ixiii.  1 — 6. 

Who  is  this  that  conieth  from  Edom,  with  dyed  garments  fror» 
Bozrah?  this  that  is  glorious  in  iiis  appaiel,  travelling  in  the 
greatness  of  his  strength  1  I  tiiat  speak  in  righteousness,  mighty 
to  save.  Wherefore  art  thou  red  in  thine  apparel,  and  thy  gar- 
ments like  him  that  treadeth  in  the  wine-fat?  I  have  trodden 
the  wine-press  alone ;  and  of  the  people  there  was  none  with 
me :  for  I  will  tread  tliem  in  mine  anger,  and  trample  them  in 
my  fury,  and  their  blood  shall  be  sjirinkled  upon  my  garments, 
and  I  will  stain  all  my  raiment.  For  the  day  of  vengeance  is  in 
my  hearl,  and  the  year  of  my  redeemed  is  come.  And  I  looked, 
and  there  was  none  to  help ;  and  I  wondered  that  there  was 
none  to  uphold:  therefore  mine  own  arm  brought  salvation  unto 
me ;  and  my  fury,  it  upheld  me.  And  I  will  tread  down  the 
people  in  mine  anger,  and  make  them  drunk  in  my  fury,  and  I 
will  bring  down  their  strength  to  the  earth. 

Within  the  whole  compass  of  language,  no 
passage  can  be  produced  more  truly  eloquent  and 
sublime  than  these  glowing  words  of  the  evangeli- 
cal prophet.  He  presents  to  our  view  a  severe  and 
bloody  conflict,  in  wiiich  a  personage  most  glorious 
and  exalted  is  introduced  as  the  principal  actor; 
and  the  tremendous  effects  of  his  power  and  anger 
are  dis[)layed  in  the  total  destruction  of  his  ene- 
mies. This  scene  is  exhibited  in  language  highly 
figurative,  with  imagery  awfully  just  and  appropri- 
ate, calculated  to  awaken  the  varied  emotions  of  as- 
tonishment and  sympathy,  of  terror  and  of  triuniph. 

Independently  of  its   evangelical  meaning,  the 


THE  CONTEST,  &C.  299 

passage  cannot  be  read  without  those  feelings  of 
awH  and  pleasure  which  the  truly  sublimt^  never 
fails  to  excite.  But  when  we  consider  the  evan- 
gelical prophet  as  describing,  in  these  words,  the 
glorious  character  and  the  deep  hutrnliation  and 
sufferings  of  the  Messiah — as  depicting  the  splen- 
did victories  by  which  he  achieved  our  redemption, 
and  the  terrible  vengeance  which  he  will  execute 
on  his  impenitent  adversaries — this  sublime  pas- 
sage assumes  infinite  interest;  and  the  scene  which 
it  unfolds,  excites  the  emotions  of  the  most  pro- 
found reverence  and  adoration.  The  evangelical 
strain  of  the  prophet,  who  seems  never  for  a  mo- 
ment to  take  his  enraptured  view  from  the  pro- 
mised Child  that  was  to  be  born,  and  the  t^on  that 
was  to  be  given — the  elevated  grandeur  and  subli- 
mity of  the  epithets,  which  are  weakened  and  de- 
graded when  applied  to  a  personage  and  event  less 
glorious  than  the  Saviour  and  his  redemption — 
justify  this  application  of  the  passage. 

Our  church,  by  appointing  the  chapter  in  which 
these  words  are  contained,  as  part  of  the  epistle 
for  Monday  in  this  holy  week,  consecrated,  from 
the  earliest  ages  of  Christianity,  to  the  commemo- 
ration of  the  passion  and  crucifixion  of  oiu'  Lord, 
refers  the  event  exhibited  in  this  passage  to  that 
victory  which,  by  his  sufferings  and  death,  he 
achieved  over  our  spiritual  enemies.  Your  time, 
therefore,  cannot  be  more  suitably  employed  than 
in  considering  the  evangelical  meaning  of  tiiese 
sublime  words. 

It  is  necessary  to  remark,  that  though  some  of 
the  declarations  in  this  passage,  which  the  prophet 
puts  into  the  mouth  of  the  Messiah,  have  a  future 
aspect,  yet  the  evident  meaning  and  connexion  of 


300  THE  CONTEST  AND 

the  various  parts  of  it  require  that  they  should  be 
rendered  in  the  past  time;  and  the  original  justifies 
tjiis  rendering.  The  scene  is  under  tiie  form  of  a 
dialogue,  which  increases  its  spirit  and  sublimity. 

The  Messiah  is  introduced  as  an  Almighty  Con- 
queror returning  triumphant  from  the  slaughter  of 
liis  foes,  and  awakening  in  those  who  behold  him 
the  emotions  of  astonishment  and  awe  ;  and  they 
burst  forth  in  the  inquiry — "  Who  is  this  that 
Cometh  from  Edom,  with  dyed  garments  from 
Bozrahl"  Bozrah  was  a  city  of  Edom,  a  country, 
the  inhabitants  of  which  had  been  distinguished 
for  their  inveterate  enmity  to  the  Jews ;  and  it  is 
usual  with  the  prophets  to  distinguish  the  enemies 
of  Christ  and  his  church  by  the  names  of  nations 
who  were  adversaries  of  Israel,  God's  peculiar 
people,  whom  he  had  selected  to  be  the  deposita- 
ries of  his  laws  and  truths  until  the  promised  seed 
should  come,  who  should  be  for  salvation  to  the 
ends  of  the  earth.  The  Messiah  therefore,  return- 
ing in  "  dyed  garments"  from  the  conflict  with  the 
enemies  of  man's  salvation,  is  represented  as  com- 
ing from  Edom  and  Bozrah. 

The  majesty  and  splendour  of  his  appearance 
excite  still  further  astonishment  and  awe. 

"  This  that  is  glorious  in  his  apparel,  travelling 
in  the  greatness  of  his  strength." 

The  appearance  of  the  Conqueror  was  suited  to 
the  dignity  of  his  character,  to  the  irresistable  might 
of  his  dominion,  and  to  the  infinitely  important 
achievements  in  which  he  had  been  engaged.  He 
"  travels  in  the  greatness  of  his  strength,"  bearing 
dismay  and  defeat  amongst  all  his  enemies,  and 
bringing  victory  and  salvation  to  his  faithful  fol- 
lowers. 


VICTORY  OF  EMMANUEL.  301 

How  applicable  is  this  description  to  our  Al- 
mighty Redeemer  !  Though  poverty  and  persecu- 
tion marked  his  suffering  life — though,  considered 
as  the  representative  of  our  guilt,  he  had  "  no  form 
nor  comeliness,  no  beauty  that  we  should  desire 
him" — though,  in  his  state  of  humiliation,  "  he  was 
despised  and  rejected  of  men  ;  a  man  of  sorrows, 
and  acquainted  with  grief" — yet  the  glory  of  the 
Godhead  shone  with  refulgent  light  through  this 
cloud  of  sorrow.  To  the  eye  of  faith,  he  appeared 
"  fairer  than  the  children  of  men,"  "  the  brightness 
of  the  Father's  glory,  and  the  express  image  of  his 
person,"  "  the  chief  among  ten  thousand,  altoge- 
ther lovely."  The  divine  virtues  which  from  his 
sacred  person  dift'used  lustre,  were  like  "  the  glo- 
rious apparel"  which  commanded  astonishment  and 
admiration.  When  he  nailed  sin  to  his  cross — 
when  he  entered  the  strong  holds  of  the  adversary 
and  routed  his  forces — when,  marching  through 
the  domains  of  death,  he  led  captivity  captive — our 
iilorious  Redeemer  returned  from  the  conquest 
"  travelling  in  the  greatness  of  his  strength." 

By  this  sublime  introduction  we  are  prepared 
for  the  delineation  of  the  almighty  power  of  the 
divine  Conqueror. 

The  question  having  been  asked,  "  Who  is  this 
that  cometh  from  Edom,  with  dyed  garments  from 
Bozrahl  this  that  is  glorious  in  his  apparel,  tra- 
velling in  the  greatness  of  his  strength  1"  the  per- 
sonage himself  returns  the  answer  : 

"  I  that  speak  in  righteousness,  mighty  to  save." 

He  was  not  a  victor  who,  swayed  by  the  spirit  of 
ambitious  domination,  sought  renown  in  devasta- 
tion and  carnage ;  who,  setting  at  defiance  justice 
and  mercy,  stretched  his  relentless  sceptre  over 


g02  TFIK  CONTEST  AND 

oppressed  nations.  Unlike  the  conquerors  of  the 
world,  the  Saviour,  gentle,  meek,  and  lowly,  di- 
rected his  almighty  power  only  against  the  adver- 
saries of  God  and  man.  He  sought  to  "  bring  down 
the  proud  and  lofty,  and  to  exalt  the  humble  and 
meek."  "  He  spake  in  righteousness  :"  in  righte- 
ousness did  he  proclaim  his  laws;  in  righteousness 
did  he  establish  his  dominion  ;  in  righteousness 
does  he  exercise  his  sway;  and  according  to  the 
eternal  rules  of  righteousness  will  he  finally  distri- 
bute the  rewards  and  punishments  of  his  kingdom. 
"  Mighty  is  he  to  save  ;"  not  indeed  from  the  yoke 
of  temporal  power,  not  from  the  bondage  of  worldly 
oppression  ;  for  his  "  kingdom  is  not  of  this  world ;" 
"  mighty  is  he  to  save"  from  the  bondage  of  sin 
and  Satan,  from  the  sway  of  unholy  passions,  more 
severe  and  humiliating  than  the  yoke  of  the  op- 
pressor. For  this  purpose  he  is  armed  with  the 
power  of  the  Godhead  :  he  is  head  over  all  things 
to  his  church,  and  ready  to  dispense  all  those  bless- 
ings which,  as  sinful  and  mortal  creatures,  we  can 
require.  We  are  therefore  called  to  render  him 
the  profound  homage  of  faith  and  obedience  ;  for 
"  all  power  is  given  to  him  in  heaven  and  on  earth." 
''  He  hath  on  his  vesture  and  on  his  thigh  a  name 
written.  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords." 

The  splendid  garments  of  this  Almighty  Con- 
queror were  stained  with  blood.  The  inquiry, 
therefore,  from  those  who  behold  his  coming,  na- 
turally arises— 

"Wherefore  art  thou  red  in  thine  apparel,  and  thy 
srarments  like  him  that  treadeth  in  the  wine  fat  1" 

Dyed  were  his  celestial  garments,  as  if  he  had 
been  treading  the  fat  where  the  wine  is  pressed 
from  the  broken  grape. 


VtCTORY  OP  EMMANUEL.  30S 

The  glorious  personage  who  is  addressed,  him- 
self replies : 

"  I  have  trodden  the  wine-press  alone  ;  and  of 
the  people  there  was  none  with  me  :  for  I  will 
tread  them  in  mine  anger,  and  trample  them  in 
my  fury,  and  iheir  blood  shall  be  sprinkled  upon 
my  garments,  and  I  will  stain  all  my  raiment.  For 
the  day  of  vengeance  is  in  my  heart,  and  the  year 
of  my  redeemed  is  come." 

The  Conqueror  had  been  engaged  in  a  severe 
and  dreadful  combat.  The  wrath  of  his  enemies 
came  mightily  upon  him,  and  bruised  him,  as  if  he 
had  been  trodden  down  in  a  wine-press.  Alone 
and  unsupported,  he  sustained  the  shock  of  his 
foes.  But  he  rose  victorious  from  the  conflict^ 
hurling  destruction  on  his  enemies.  He  sprinkled 
their  "  blood  upon  his  garments,  and  stained  his 
raiment."  In  that  "  day  of  vengeance,"  when  he 
came  to  achieve  the  deliverance  of  his  faithful  fol- 
lowers, his  angt-r  and  his  fury  burst  forth,  and  he 
"  trod  down  the  people,"  and  trampled  them  under 
his  victorious  feet. 

What  a  forcible  and  awful  picture  of  the  achieve- 
ments of  Jesus  Christ,  the  glorious  King  and  Cap- 
tain of  our  salvation!  Beholding  him  in  the  day 
of  his  humiliation  and  suffering,  we  are  asjtonished 
that  "  his  visage  is  marred  more  than  any  man, 
and  his  form  more  than  the  sons  of  men."  The 
blood  which  stains  the  garments  of  a  Saviour  so 
meek,  so  lowly,  so  gentle,  may  well  excite  our 
astonishtnent.  He  accounts  for  his  mysterious  ap- 
pearance :  "  I  have  trodden  the  wine-press  alone." 
As  the  grape  is  bruised  in  the  wine-press  by  the 
weight  of  the  mill-stone,  so  was  I  crushed  by  the 
wrath  of  God  due  to  the  sins  of  a  guilty  world. 


304  THE  CONTEST  AND 

"  Alone,"  without  support,  without  sympathy,  with- 
out comfort,  I  sustained  the  inflictions  of  divine 
justice.  "  Of  the  people  there  was  none  with  me." 
Even  those  for  whom  I  was  enduring  those  dread- 
ful agonies,  refused  me  their  compassion.  The 
chosen  companions  of  my  toils  and  labours,  in  this 
dark  hour,  forsook  me  and  fled.  In  vain  did  I  in- 
voke the  pity  of  those  who  surrounded  the  cross 
on  which  I  was  encountering  the  agonies  of  an 
ignominious  death  :  "  Is  it  nothing  to  you  all,  ye 
that  pass  byf  Mockery  and  insult  answered  the 
cries  of  anguish  which  burst  from  my  soul.  Even 
my  Almighty  Father,  in  this  hour  of  misery,  "with- 
drew from  me  the  ineffable  consolations  of  his 
countenance,  and  directing  his  justice  against  me, 
as  the  representative  of  rebellious  man,  cast  upon 
me  his  wrathful  frown.  "  My  God,  my  God,  why 
hast  thou  forsaken  me  ■?"  Oh  !  was  there  any  sor- 
row like  unto  my  sorrow  wherewith  the  Lord 
afflicted  me  in  the  day  of  his  fierce  anger?  But 
in  the  counsels  of  the  eternal  Godhead,  as  the  Re- 
deemer of  man,  I  was  to  achieve,  through  suffering 
and  death,  his  salvation.  The  hour  of  my  death, 
therefore,  became  the  hour  of  my  triumph:  it  was 
the  consummation  of  the  degrading  scene  of  my 
humiliation,  during  which  "  I  was  smitten  of  God 
and  afflicted  ;  was  wounded  for  the  transgressions 
and  bruised  for  the  iniquities  of  my  people."  Thus, 
''  through  the  suffering  of  death,  I  became  crowned 
with  glory  and  honour :"  the  ignominious  cross 
was  changed  into  the  throne  of  almighty  power 
and  dominion  :  yes,  from  the  wine-press  in  which, 
crushed  by  the  arm  of  divine  justice,  I  satisfied  to 
the  uttermost  its  inexorable  claims,  I  arose,  arrayed 
with  the  **  garments  of  vengeance  for  clothing,  and 


VICTORY  OF  EMMANUEL.  305 

with  zeal  as  with  a  cloak.''  On  your  foes,  sin,  and 
death,  and  Satan,  who  held  you  captive,  I  hurled 
the  thunder  of  my  power;  I  sunk  them  in  the  wine- 
press of  my  wrath  ;  I  trampled  them  in  my  fury ; 
their  blood  I  sprinkled  on  my  garments,  with  their 
blood  I  stained  my  raiment.  To  accomplish  your 
redemption,  I  thus  went  forth  in  the  greatness  of 
my  power,  conquering  and  to  conquer.  Mercy 
hushed  her  pleadings  ;  for  the  day  of  vengeance 
was  in  my  heart,  and  the  year  of  my  redeemed  had 
come. 

In  the  succeeding  verses,  the  Messiah  still  fur- 
ther displays  the  wonders  of  his  redeeming  power, 
his  glorious  triumphs  over  all  the  adversaries  of 
our  salvation. 

"  1  looked,  and  there  was  none  to  help ;  and  I 
wondered  that  there  was  none  to  uphold :  there- 
fore mine  own  arm  brought  salvation  unto  me ; 
and  my  righteousness,  it  upheld  me.  And  I  will 
tread  down  the  people  in  mine  anger,  and  make 
them  drunk  in  my  fury,  and  I  will  bring  down  their 
strength  to  the  earth." 

The  miserable  race  of  man  were  in  captivity  to 
sin  and  Satan — cut  off  from  communion  with  their 
God,  the  fountain  of  life  and  happiness — obnoxious, 
through  transgression,  to  his  justice.  "  I  looked, 
and  there  was  none  to  help ;  I  wondered  that 
there  was  none  to  uphold."  None  of  the  innumer- 
able myriads  of  created  spirits,  however  deeply 
they  might  compassionate,  could  restore  fallen 
man.  His  guilt,  incurred  by  transgressions  com- 
mitted against  an  infinite  God,  was  also  infinite, 
and  required  an  infinite  atonement.  The  holy  law 
of  the  Creator  of  the  world  had  been  violated  ;  its 
everlasting  penalties  must  be  sustained.     The  au- 

VoL.  III.  39 


306  THE  CONTEST  AND 

thority  of  the  Sovereign  of  angels  and  of  man  had 
been   insulted  ;  an   all- perfect  reparation  was  ne- 
cessary.    Imperfection  would  tarnish  the  most  ex- 
alted obedience,  and  defeat  the  boldest  efforts  of 
the  highest  angelic  spirit ;  among  the  host  of  hea- 
ven none,  therefore,  could  be  found  able  to  render 
that   perfect    obedience,    that    infinite   atonement, 
which  the  contemned  authority  and  justice  of  God 
exacted.     Man  was  sinking  under  the  vengeance 
of  his  Almighty  Judge  :  prompted  by  infijiite  and 
ineffable  compassion,  the  eternal  Son  of  the  Father 
undertook  that  infinitely  arduous  ofiice,  to  which 
the  most  perfect  seraph  was  unequal :  he  resolved 
to  encounter  and  satisfy  the  claims  of  divine  holi- 
ness, and  in  the  person  of  man  to  sustain  the  tre- 
mendous inflictions  of  divine  justice.    He  resolved, 
and   he   effected    our    redemption ;    his    own    arm 
brought  salvation  unto  him  :  his  omnipotent  power 
enabled  him   to   achieve   our  redemption,   and  to 
bring  in  everlasting  righteousness :   "  his  fury,  it 
upheld  him."     Roused  to  holy  indignation  against 
the  enemies   of  man's   salvation,  "  he  trod   them 
down  in  his  anger,  he  made   them   drunk   in  his 
fury,  he  brought  down  their  strength  to  the  earth," 
binding  them  in  chains  at  his  victorious  feet,  and 
emptying    into   their    souls    the    cup  of  his  fury, 
which,    like    an   intoxicating    draught,    prostrated 
their  strength,    and    brought   them   to  the   earth. 
Victorious  over  all    his  enemies,    he   reigns,   tlie 
dispenser  of  life,  health,  and  salvation  to  a  fallen 
world. 

Thus  have  I  endeavoured  to  exhibit  to  you  the 
awful  and  sublime  import  of  this  evangelical  pas- 
sage. 

The  first  impressions  which  the  contemplation 


VICTORY  OF  EMMANUEL.  g07 

of  it  is  calculated  to  excite,  are  those  of  profound 
reverence  and  admiration  of  the  glorious  character 
and  offices  of  Christ. 

An  omnipotent  Conqueror  returning  victorious 
from  the  combat,  glorious  in  his  apparel,  travelling 
in  the  greatness  of  his  strength ;  speaking  in  righ- 
teousness;  mighty  to  save;  the  day  of  vengeance 
in  his  heart ;  treading  down  the  people  in  his 
anger,  making  them  drunk  in  his  fury;  achieving 
salvation  by  his  victorious  arm — it  is  not  in  the 
power  of  language  lo  convey  to  us  more  awfully 
sublime  ideas  of  the  divine  power  of  Christ,  and 
of  the  fulness  and  glory  of  his  redemption,  as  well 
as  of  the  exterminating  terrors  of  his  justice.  To 
suppose  that  an  inspired  prophet  would  apply  these 
divine  epitiiets  to  the  victories  of  a  frail  and  sinfu! 
man,  would  be  to  impute  to  him  absurd  and  crimi- 
nal impiety.  The  divine  nature  of  the  Saviour 
alone  justifies  this  glorious  representation  of  him: 
the  divine  nature  of  the  Saviour  alone  constitutes 
an  unfailing  ground  of  confidence  and  hope  that  he 
is  mighty  to  save.  The  exhibition  which  the  pro- 
phet presents  of  the  character  and  triumphs  of  the 
Messiah,  affords  the  joyful  conviction  that  nothing  is 
left  unfinished  which  was  necessary  for  the  salva- 
tion of  man.  The  all-perfect  obedience  which  di- 
vine holiness  exacted,  has  been  rendered,  and  the 
atonement  to  offended  justice  has  been  made.  The 
exercise  of  mercy  is  no  longer  incompatible  with 
the  holiness  and  justice  of  the  Sovereign  and  Judge 
of  the  universe.  Christ  is  able  to  save  to  the  ut- 
termost those  who  come  unto  God  through  him. 
Seated  on  the  throne  of  his  glory  as  the  Mediator 
and  King  of  his  church,  he  dispenses  to  his  peni- 
tent people  that  grace  which  will  enable  them  to 


308  THE  CONTEST  AND 

triumph   over  all  the  enemies  of  their   salvation, 
whom  he  hath  already  vanquished. 

Come  then,  ye  sons  of  men — for  you  this  glori- 
ous Redeemer  shed  his  blood,  for  you  he  purchased 
the  almighty  succours  of  his  grace — come,  thank- 
fully accept  the  ofters  of  salvation  which  he  ex- 
tends to  you.  He  is  mighty  to  save  you  from  your 
sins,  which  render  you  obnoxious  to  the  divine 
displeasure.  Trust  cordially  and  supremely  in  his 
mercy  and  grace,  and  faithfully  adore  and  serve 
him  ;  and  he  will  exalt  you  to  the  glories  of  his 
celestial  throne. 

But  if  you  reject  that  love  which  prompted  him 
to  undergo  such  tremendous  sufferings,  and  to 
achieve  such  glorious  victories  for  you  and  for 
your  salvation — if  you  continue  impenitent  and 
unholy,  the  slaves  of  sin  and  the  world,  when  he 
calls  and  urges  you  to  return  to  him — he  will  open 
upon  you  those  stores  of  wrath  which  he  once 
poured  forth  on  the  adversaries  which  held  you  in 
bondage.  When  he  comes,  the  day  of  vengeance 
again  in  his  heart,  to  execute  the  fierceness  of  his 
displeasure  on  those  who  obey  not  his  Gospel,  he 
will  trample  them  in  his  anger,  he  will  make  them 
drunk  in  his  fury;  yes,  in  the  forcible  language  of 
inspiration,  he  will  spill  tiicir  life-blood  on  the 
ground. 

Fiiiallij.  The  contemplation  of  this  glowing 
4or<>'phetical  description  of  the  character  and  offices 
of  tliG  Messiah  should  impress  us  with  the  senti- 
ments of  lively  gratitude  for  his  unparalleled  con- 
descension and  mercy. 

Alone  he  trod  the  wine-press  of  divine  wrath, 
and  of  the  ,people  there  was  none  with  him.  Per- 
secuted by  th<)se  whom  he  came  to  save — deserted 


VICTORY  OF  EMMANUEL.  309 

by  his  disciples,  whom  he  had  distinguished  by  so 
many  acts  of  love — forsaken,  in  the  hour  of  his 
bitter  agony,  by  his  God — the  Saviour  of  the  world 
sunk,  friendless  and  alone,  under  the  overwhelm- 
ing flood  of  divine  justice. 

And  shall  we  still,  blessed  Saviour,  withhold 
from  thee  our  sympathy — still,  unmoved,  behold 
thy  bitter  sufferings,  and  refuse  to  commemorate 
them  in  the  sacrament  of  thy  institution — cruel  as 
thy  murderers,  crucify  thee  afresh  by  our  sins'? 
No ;  unless  our  souls  are  dead  to  the  emotions  of 
sympathy,  of  gratitude,  and  love. 

My  brethren,  the  season  has  arrived,  sacred  to 
the  commemoration  of  the  sufferings  of  our  Lord. 
In  the  primitive  church,  the  whole  season  of  Lent 
was  devoted  to  acts  of  humiliation  and  penitence 
in  memory  of  the  sufferings  of  Christ,  and  the 
week  of  his  crucifixion  was  marked  by  extraor- 
dinary acts  of  devotion.  This  pious  custom  is  pre- 
served in  our  church,  which  provides  daily  services 
during  this  week.  Let  it  not  be  said  that  we  can- 
not spare  a  few  hours  from  business  or  pleasure 
to  devote  to  the  grateful  commemoration  of  the 
sufferings  of  him  who  devoted  his  life  and  his 
death  for  us :  especially  on  the  day  consecrated 
to  the  commemoration  of  his  last  agonies,  in  our 
private  devotions  as  well  as  in  the  public  service 
of  the  church,  let  us  gratefully  celebrate  the  infinite 
love  which  induced  the  Son  of  God  to  offer  himself 
up  a  sacrifice  on  the  cross  for  our  redemption. 

And  as  thou,  O  holy  Jesus,  didst,  on  this  day, 
die  to  destroy,  by  the  power  of  thy  death,  the  do- 
minion of  our  spiritual  adversaries,  so,  by  thy  grace, 
may  our  spiritual  death  unto  sin  be  this  day  effect- 
ed ;  that  thus  rising  to   a  new  and  holy  life,  we 


3-10  THE  CONTEST,  &C. 

may  be  fitted  for  sharing  with  thee  in  the  glories 
of  that  celestial  kingdom  to  which,  as  the  reward 
of  thy  sufferings,  thou  art  exalted,  and  where  thou 
livost  and  reignest,  with  the  Father  and  the  Holy 
Ghost,  one  God,  for  ever  and  ever  ;  to  whom  be 
ascribed  all  honour,  power,  majesty,  and  dominion, 
world  without  end. 


SERMOxN    XXVl. 


THE  GRAVE  OF  JESUS— THE  SCENE  OF  THE  RESURRECTION. 


Matthew  xxviii.  1. 

In  the  end  of  the  sabbath,  as  it  began  to  dawn  toward  the  first  day 
of  the  week,  came  Mary  Magdalene,  and  the  other  Mary  to  see 
the  sepulchre. 

The  impulse  of  lively  affection  only  could  have 
directed  the  footsteps  of  these  females  to  the  place 
where  their  Lord  lay.  No  expectation  had  they 
that  he  had  risen  from  the  dead  ;  for,  in  common 
with  his  disciples,  they  supposed  that  the  stone 
which  closed  the  door  of  his  sepulchre  had  shut 
him  for  ever  from  the  world,  and  frustrated  all  the 
hopes  which  they  had  entertained  that  it  was  he 
who  should  redeem  Israel.  Well,  therefore,  might 
their  breasts  be  agitated  with  the  mingled  emotions 
of  fear  and  joy,  when  "  a  great  earthquake"  pro- 
claimed the  descent  of  a  celestial  messenger,  whose 
"  countenance  was  like  lightning,  and  whose  rai- 
ment was  while  as  snow  ;"  and  who  addressed  to 
them  the  infinitely  momentous  tidings- — "  Ye  seek 
Jesus,  which  was  crucified.  He  is  not  here:  for  he 
is  risen,  as  he  said.  Come,  see  the  place  where  the 
Lord  lay." 

This  is  the  language  with  which  the  church  ad- 
dresses us  on  this  sacred  festival.  It  was  but  lately 
she  called  us  to  contemplate,  with  sorrow  and  pe- 
nitence, the  Saviour,  as  the  man  of  sorrow;  his 


3J2  THE  GRAVE  OF  JESUS — 

visage  marred  through  suffering ;  smitten  for  our 
transgressions;  bruised  for  our  iniquities;  pouring 
out  his  soul  unto  death.  In  the  solemnities  of  yes- 
terday, she  called  us  to  commemorate  the  descent 
of  his  body  into  the  house  of  silence,  to  sanctify 
for  us  the  chambers  of  corruption,  while  his  soul 
passed  to  the  prison  of  departed  spirits,  to  pro- 
claim to  them  the  glad  tidings  of  redemption.  This 
day  she  calls  us  to  his  sepulchre,  cheering  us  with 
the  glad  tidings — "  He  is  not  here  :  he  is  risen. 
Come,  see  the  place  where  the  Lord  lay."  "  Christ 
is  risen  from  the  dead,  and  dieth  no  more."  "  Death 
hath  no  more  dominion  over  him."  "  The  Lord 
hath  redeemed  Jacob,  and  glorified  himself  in 
Israel." 

The  scene  of  the  resurrection — 

1.  Is  an  interesting  scene  ; 

2.  It  affords  an  evidence  of  the  divine  power  of 
Christ ;  and, 

3.  It  is  a  pledge  of  his  mercy  and  compassion, 
and  of  the  glorious  hope  of  immortality. 

1.  The  scene  of  the  resurrection  is  an  interesting 
scene. 

In  the  sepulchre  rests  that  divine  Personage 
whose  life  had  been  uniformly  pure,  exemplary, 
and  benevolent,  and  yet  whose  life  had  been  a 
continued  series  of  pain  and  suffering.  Here,  at 
length,  he  reposes  in  peace.  He  has  reached  a 
haven  where  he  is  sheltered  from  those  tempests 
that  rolled  the  waves  of  sorrow  over  his  soul.  On 
the  cross  he  poured  forth  his  soul,  and  finished  the 
work  of  suffering.  He  has  become  the  peaceful 
tenant  of  the  tomb— of  that  house  of  silence  where 
the  sorrows  of  life  are  forgotten — the  wicked  cease 


THE  SCENE  OF  THE  RESURRECTIOX.  319 

from  troubling  him — the  persecuted  Friend  of  man 
at  length  finds  rest. 

Contemplating  then  the  grave  merely  as  the 
place  of  rest  to  the  holy  Jesus  from  the  calamities 
which  had  so  long  pursued  him,  wc  must  regard  it 
with  interest;  for  in  its  quiet  abode  this  divine  and 
benevolent,  but  persecuted  Saviour  of  the  world, 
has  at  length  found  a  refuge  which  calamity  cannot 
disturb,  vidiere  the  darts  of  calumny  and  persecu- 
tion cannot  assail  him,  where  the  voice  of  the  op- 
pressor is  no  more  heard. 

But  the  scene  of  the  resurrection  is  also  interest- 
ing on  account  of  the  varied  and  anxious  emotions 
which  must  have  agitated  the  breasts  of  tiie  dis- 
ciples. 

Their  Master,  their  Companion,  their  Guide, 
their  most  tender  and  faitiiful  Friend,  had  been 
wrested  from  them  by  the  hand  of  violence,  cruci- 
fied, and  slain.  With  what  sacred  affection  must 
they  have  beheld  the  tomb  which  guarded  his  pre- 
cious remains  !  Mary  Magdalene,  who,  having  had 
much  forgiven,  loved  much,  anticipating  even  the 
dawn  of  day,  hurried  to  pour  forth  her  affectionate 
lamentations  at  the  sepidchre  of  her  Lord.  When 
the  tidings  reached  them  that  the  body  of  their 
Master  was  not  to  be  found,  the  disciple  whom 
Jesus  loved,  and  the  faithless  but  penitent  Peter, 
full  of  anxious  affection,  hasted  to  the  sepulchre. 
It  was  a  period  of  awful  solicitude  to  them ;  for 
the  mysterious  scenes  of  the  cross  and  the  sepul- 
chre involved  not  only  their  destiny,  but  the  destiny 
of  a  fallen  world.  The  sepulchre  was  either  to 
hold  for  ever  the  body  of  the  crucified  Jesus,  and 
thus  to  frustrate  the  hopes  of  redemption  through 
him ;  or,  bursting  its  bands,  Jesus  was  to  issue 

Vol.  III.  40 


ST4  THK  GRA\  K  OF  JESUS— 

from  it,  tlio  viciorii)us  Conqueror  of  death  and  the 
grave,  the  Author  of  life  and  immortality.  Bo^liold, 
then,  a  fallen  world  stands  at  the  sepulclire  of  Jesus, 
wailing  its  destiny,  trembling  lest  the  bands  of  cor- 
ruption should  hold  him,  and  thus  blast  the  hope 
ihat  he  was  to  be  the  world's  Redeemer. 

Blessed  be  the  God  and  F;'ther  of  oiir  Lord 
Jesus  Christ,  this  state  of  awful  suspense  did  not 
long  continue.  A  messenger  from  heaven  pro- 
claims the  tidings — "  He  has  risen."     Thus, 

2.  The  scene  of  the  resurrection  affords  an  evi- 
dence of  the  divine  [xtwer  of  Jesus. 

But  as  yesterday  we  beheld  committed  to  the 
tomb  tiie  bodv  ot"  him  who  h  id  been  crucified  as  a 
m  def  ictor  Th  '  si^pwlchre  was  in  the  custody  of 
his  iiuplacable  enemies.  The  seal  of  the  civil  au- 
thority is  set  to  the  stone  which  closed  the  door.^ 
A  watch  is  placed  to  guard  it. 

To-day  we  go  to  the  place  vvhere  the  Lord  lay. 
The  body  of  Jesus  is  not  there.  By  whom  could 
it  h.fve  been  removed  I  By  the  disciples  and  fol- 
lowers ot"  Christ?  They  had  not  the  courage  nor 
the  means  for  accomplishing  the  theft.  For  when 
their  Miister  was  taken  to  the  judgment-seat  of 
Pdate,  they  forsook  him  and  fled.  And  would  they 
have  run  the  risk  of  detection,  and  of  the  most  se- 
vere  punishment,  in  order  to  get  into  their  posses- 
sion the  body  of  him  whom  they  had  thus  basely- 
forsaken  1  Where  was  the  watch,  too,  which  was 
set  by  his  inveterate  enemies  to  guard  the  se- 
pulchre I 

That  the  body  of  Jesus  could  have  been  stolen 
from  the  place  where  it  was  thus  guarded,  is  wholly 
incredible,   is   morally   impossible.     The   mighty 


TRE  SCExNE  OF  THE  RFSIJR«ECTIOIV.  315 

power  of  God  J'aised  his  f^on  Jesus  from  the  dead. 
Of  this  indeed  he  h;is  ^iven  th(;  fuHest,  the  ruost 
irrefragable  testitnoiiy,  in  tlie  miraculous  success 
and  propagation  of  that  Gospel  throughout  the 
world — vvhich  is  founded  on  the  truth,  that  the  cru- 
cified Jesus  of  Ntz  ireth  has  risen  again — bj  simple, 
friendless,  obscure  fishermen  of  Galilee. 

Come  then,  unbeliever!  view  on  this  day  the 
sepulchre  of  Jesus.  Lately  to  this  tomb  was  com- 
mitted his  body.  He  had  ref)eate(lly  predicted, 
that,  though  he  slioul  1  be  crueified,  on  the  third 
•day  he  should  rise  again.  His  enemies  resolved  to 
frustrate  his  predi(tit)ns,  and  to  prove  him  an  im- 
postor; and  with  tiiis  view  they  guarded  the  se- 
pulchre. But  all  their  precautions  proved  vaino 
Look  at  the  tomb  of  Jesus  :  the  body  of  him  who 
was  lately  its  tenant  is  not  to  be  found  :  nnd  be- 
hold, he  appears  to  his  disciples:  he  w;dks  abroad 
in  the  f;ice  of  day;  he  comes  into  the  midst  of  them 
in  their  private  retirement;  he  talks  with  thi  ni ;  he 
eats  with  them  ;  he  invites  them  to  handle  him,  to 
be  satisfied  that  he  is  not  a  spirit.  The  incredulous 
Thomas  he  calls — "  Reach  hither  thy  finger,  and 
behold  my  hands  ;  atid  reach  hither  thy  hand,  and 
thrust  it  into  my  side."  He  ascends  into  heaven 
in  their  presence.  He  bestows  upon  them,  accord- 
ing to  his  promise,  the  rniracidout?  gifts  of  the  Holy- 
Ghost.  Thus  armed  with  power  from  on  high, 
they  go  forth  conquering  and  to  conquer.  The 
prejudices,  the  pride,  the  passions,  the  wealth,  the 
learning,  the  power  of  the  world,  vanish  before  the 
preaching  of  these  obscure  and  contemned  men, 
like  the  dew  before  the  beams  of  the  mornin"-. 
The  nations  become  the  kingdoms  of  God  and  of 
his  Christ ;  and  this  day  Christians  celebrate  that 


310  THE  GRAVE  OF  JESUS — 

holy  sacrament  which  has  brought  down,  from  the 
period  of  his  appearance,  the  solemn  truth,  that 
he  who  had  died  had  risen  again. 

Will  the  unbeliever  resist  these  facts?  Will  he 
justify  his  incredulity  by  the  idle  tale,  that  the  dis- 
ciples came  by  night  and  stole  away  the  body  of 
Jesus'?  Will  he  maintain  that  Jesus  was  an  im- 
postor, and  his  disciples  impostors,  like  their  Mas- 
ter !  And  yet  these  impostors  displayed  all  the 
simplicity,  disinterestedness,  undaunted  zeal  of  the 
most  upright  and  sincere  votaries  of  truth.  These 
impostors,  contemporary  historians,  their  enemies, 
acknowledge  exercised  miraculous  powers.  They 
planted  in  every  land  a  pure  and  holy  religion,  on 
the  ruins  of  an  idolatry  deeply  seated  in  the  pre- 
judices and  passions  of  the  multitude.  And  though 
the  kings  of  the  earth  rise  up,  and  the  rulers  take 
counsel  together  against  the  Lord,  and  against  his 
anointed,  this  religion  and  its  ordinances,  coeval 
with  the  events  which  they  commemorate,  still  sub- 
sist. The  gates  of  hell  have  poured  forth  their 
forces,  but  have  been  unable  to  prevail  against  that 
Gospel,  which  there  are  those  who  say  is  founded 
in  delusion.  Surely  they  are  fighting  against  God 
' — surely  they  are  resisting  the  clearest  evidence 
that  can  be  presented  to  inlluence  the  understand- 
ing and  the  heart. 

13e  not  then  faithless,  but  believing.  Believe  in 
him  who  is  the  way,  the  truth,  and  the  life ;  who 
was  the  purest,  the  most  benevolent,  the  most 
amiable  personage  that  ever  visited  our  miserable 
world.  Believe  in  him  whose  Gospel  is  the  most 
ennobling  and  consolatory  system  that  ever  blessed 
our  fallen  race.  It  dispenses  light  for  the  darkness 
of  human  reaKSon  ;  it  discloses  mercy  for  the  frail- 


THE  SCENE  OF  THE  RESURRECTION.  317 

ties  and  sins  of  fallen  man  ;  it  provides  grace  and 
stren<?th  for  his  weak  and  erring  nature ;  it  ofters 
consolation  and  support  under  the  sorrows  and 
bereavements  that  crowd  upon  inm  ;  it  provides 
for  him  that  immortality  and  bliss,  to  which  every 
power  of  his  soul  aspires,  and  for  which  every 
feeling  of  his  soul  pants,"  What  infatuation,  then — 
what  madness  would  it  be  to  reject  these  blessings 
— to  spurn  from  us  the  world's  Redeemer,  to  quench 
the  light  of  divine  truth  and  mercy,  and  to  grope 
in  error  and  sin,  till  at  length  our  feet  stumble  on 
the  dark  mountains,  and  the  ways  of  peace  be  for 
ever  hid  from  our  eyes  !     But, 

3.  The  scene  of  the  resurrection  affords  also  a 
pledge  of  the  mercy  and  compassion  of  the  Saviour, 
and  of  the  glorious  hope  of  immortality. 

What,  indeed,  was  the  whole  life  of  Christ  but  a 
constant  display  of  mercy  and  compassion^  For 
what  did  he  make  his  birth-place  a  stable,  and  his 
cradle  a  manger  1  For  what  did  he  encounter  the 
ills  of  poverty,  tread  the  path  of  suffering,  wander 
more  desolate  than  the  foxes  who  have  holes,  and 
the  birds  of  the  air  who  have  nests,  without  a  place 
to  lay  his  head  1  For  what  did  he  encounter  the 
treachery  of  friends,  and  the  scorn  and  persecu- 
tion of  his  enemies — give  his  back  to  the  smiters, 
and  his  cheeks  to  them  that  plucked  off  the  hair  1 
For  what,  in  Gethsemane's  garden,  did  he  sweat 
drops  of  blood  ;  and  in  the  darkness  and  horrors 
of  Calvary,  yield  up  his  soul  in  death  l  For  what 
all  this,  but  to  prosecute  his  work  of  mercy  and 
compassion  for  guilty  man  l 

Yet,  unavailing  would  have  been  the  humiliation 
of  the  manger,  the  path  of  suffering,  the  scourge  '^ 


318  TFIE  GRAVE  OF  JESUS — 

of  persecution,  the  agonies  of  Gethsemane,  the 
horrors  of  Calvary,  if,  at  length,  he  had  been  sub- 
ject for  ever  to  the  dominion  of  the  grave ;  the 
sword  of  divine  justice  would  still  have  remained 
unsheathed,  the  sceptre  of  mercy  still  prostrate, 
the  gate  of  heaven  still  closed. 

But  when  Jesus  burst  the  bands  of  the  grave, 
when  he  shook  off  the  garments  of  corruption,  he 
afforded  a  sure  pledge  of  his  mercy  and  compas- 
sion, proved,  by  this  his  victory  over  death,  through 
the  power  of  the  Almighiy  Father,  that  the  sacri- 
fice of  his  cross  was  accepted,  that  the  justice  of 
the  Eternal  was  satisfied,  the  holiness  of  the  Sove- 
reign of  the  universe  vindicated,  and  the  kingdom 
of  heaven  opened  to  true  believers.  His  resurrec- 
tion exhibits  the  pledge  that  death  is  vanquished, 
corruption  disarmed  ;  and  that,  finally,  death  and 
the  sea  shall  give  up  their  dead,  to  appear  in  in- 
corruptible bodies  at  the  judgment-seat  of  God. 

Ye  then,  to  whom  the  remembrance  of  your  sins 
is  grievous,  and  the  burden  of  them  intolerable, 
behold,  in  the  resurrection  of  your  Lord,  the  so- 
lemn pledge  that  the  atonement  which  divine  jus- 
tice demanded  has  been  made  ;  that  Christ  your 
Redeemer,  who  poured  forth  his  blood  for  you  on 
the  cross,  is  exalted  to  heaven,  to  give  remission 
of  sins  to  all  who  believe  in  his  name.  Hear  the 
voice  of  mercy  which,  risen  from  the  grave  and 
enthroned  in  majesty  in  the  heavens,  he  addresses 
to  you :  "  I  am  he  who  once  died,  but  am  now 
risen  again,  and  liveth  for  ever — exalted  to  be  a 
Prince  and  Saviour,  to  give  deliverance  to  the  cap- 
tives, and  the  opening  of  the  prison  to  them  that 
are  bound.  The  bruised  reed  will  I  not  break : 
with  me  there  is  mercy  and  plenteous  redemption. 


THE  SCENE  OP  THE  RESURRECTION.  319 

Come  then  to  the  fountain  that  is  opened  for  sin 
and  for  uncleanness :  wash,  and  be  clean.  Come 
ye  to  the  waters ;  yea,  come,  buy  wine  and  milk 
without  money  and  without  price. 

Ye  thoughtless  and  sinful  votaries  of  the  world, 
listen  to  the  voice  of  expostulation  which  he  who 
this  day  burst  the  barriers  of  the  tomb,  the  Almighty 
Conqueror,  addresses  to  you  :  "  Is  it  nothing,  that 
I  trod  for  you  the  wine-press  of  the  fierce  anger  of 
the  Almighty  1  Is  it  nothing,  that,  on  the  cross,  I 
encountered  for  you  the  agonies  of  death,  and 
cried  imt  as  one  forsaken  by  my  God  I  Is  it  no- 
thing, that  for  your  redemption  I  have  burst  the 
bands  of  the  grave,  and  escaped  from  corrup- 
tion ?  Is  it  nothing,  that  from  the  throne  of  my 
glory,  where  I  am  now  exalted,  I  offer  you  par- 
don and  salvation  I  Yet  a  little  while,  the  day  of 
grace  will  be  closed  :  the  sceptre  of  mercy,  which 
is  now  extended,  will  be  laid  aside.  The  judgment 
will  be  set,  the  books  will  be  open.  Read  in  them 
the  awful  doom  of  the  impenitent  contemners  of 
my  mercy — everlasting  banishment  from  the  pre- 
sence of  God,  and  from  the  glory  of  his  power." 

Penitent  believers,  listen  to  the  voice  of  that 
Saviour  who  this  day  rose  for  your  justification : 
•'  I  have  been  the  plague  of  death  ;  of  the  grave  I 
have  been  the  destruction.  Repentance  has  been 
hid  from  mine  eyes.  For  you,  O  believers,  I  hold 
the  keys  of  death  and  hell.  The  prison  of  the 
grave  shall  not  hold  you.  Corruption  shall  not 
have  power  over  you.  Your  mortal  shall  put  on 
immortality.  You  shall  enter  the  paradise  of  God. 
I  will  lead  you  to  living  fountains  of  water.  All 
tears  shall  be  wiped  from  your  eyes." 

Ye,  then,  who  mourn  the  dissolution  of  some  of 


320  THE  GRAVE  OF  JESUS,  &C. 

the  tender  lies  of  life,  take  comfort  at  the  grave  of 
your  Saviour  Jesus,  who,  rising  in  power  from  it, 
proclaims — "I  am  the  resurrection  and  the  life; 
he  that  believeth  in  me,  thougli  he  were  dead,  yet 
shall  he  live  :  and  whosoever  liveth  and  believeth 
in  me,  shall  never  die."  "  Sorrow  not  then  as 
those  that  have  no  hope."  The  beloved  friends 
Avhose  departure  ye  mourn,  united  to  him  by  faith, 
are  not  dead  for  ever.  Short  and  peaceful  is  the 
slumber  of  their  grave.  Soon  shall  their  bodies 
wake  from  corruption,  and  be  united  to  their  souls, 
now  in  the  paradise  of  God.  Secure  your  interest 
in  the  merits  of  him  who  once  died  for  your  sins, 
and  rose  for  your  justification.  Then  through  the 
vale  of  death  he  will  in  safety  conduct  you  ;  to  the 
celestial  Zion  he  will  bring  you,  to  join  before  his 
throne  the  blessed  saints  who  have  gone  before 
you,  and  you  shall  ever  be  with  the  Lord.  Com- 
fort one  another  with  these  words ;  comfort  one 
another  with  these  glorious  hopes. 

Christians,  the  pledges  of  these  hopes  are  spread 
before  you,  in  the  memorials  of  the  body  and  blood 
of  your  Lord.  Your  Saviour,  who  is  risen  from 
the  grave,  and  sits  in  glory  in  heaven,  offers  you 
the  spiritual  food  of  his  precious  body  and  blood. 
Eat  and  drink  with  lively,  and  humble,  and  holy 
faith ;  and  by  the  merits  and  power  of  his  body 
and  blood  your  souls  and  bodies  shall  be  nourished 
and  strengthened  to  everlasting  life. 


SEFvBlON   XXVIL 


THE  DISPLAY  OF  THE  DIVINE  GLORY  IN  OUR  REDEMPTION. 


Isaiah  xliv.  23. 

Sing,  O  ye  hoavons ;  for  the  Lord  hath  done  it :  shout,  ye  lower 
parts  of  the  earth :  break  forth  into  singing,  ye  mountains,  O 
forest,  and  every  tree  therein :  for  the  Lord  hath  redeemed 
Jacob,  and  glorified  himself  in  Israel. 

Deeply  interestinir  must  have  been  the  subject 
Vi^iich  occupied  the  view  of  the  prophet,  when,  not 
satisfied  with  the  strains  of  personal  exultation,  he 
bursts  forth  in  the  awakening  cal!  to  universal  na- 
ture to  take  up  the  song  of  rejoicing.  It  was  not  a 
private  mercy  extended  to  the  prophet ;  it  was  not 
a  temporal  blessing  bestowed  on  that  chosen  peo- 
ple to  wdiom  he  had  been  so  often  the  messenger 
of  the  counsels  and  commands  of  the  Lord,  and 
u'hose  destinies  had  been  so  often  the  subject  of 
his  predictions.  Ilis  view  glanced  beyond  the 
scenes  around  him,  and  fixed  on  those  distant  pe- 
riods when  the  Lord  would  visit  his  people  with 
mercy  from  on  high,  and  bring  spiritual  redemp- 
tion to  his  chosen.  The  deliverance  of  Israel  from 
the  hands  of  their  enemies,  the  immediate  subject 
that  warmed  the  soul  of  the  prophet,  animating 
subject  of  gratitude  as  it  was,  he  considers  but  as 
a  type  and  a  pledge  of  that  redemption  from  sin 
and  death  which  God  would  vouchsafe  to  the  world. 
The  glorious  event  was  not  to  take  place  until 
after  the  lapse  of  ages :  but  to  the  excited  and  en- 

VoL.  III.  41 


WZZ  THE  DISPLAY  OF  THE  DIVINE  GLORlf 

raptured  imagination  of  tlie  prophet,  ages  revolve 
in  an  instant — the  long  tract  of  time  loses  its  riis- 
tance — the  event  appears  present — the  redemption- 
of  man  seems  accomplished — Jehovali  has  blotted 
out,  as  a  chjud,  his  transgressions,  and  as  a  thick 
cloiid,  his  sins.  Transport  swells  the  soul  of  the 
prophet.  F'eeble  is  his  tongue,  feeble  tiie  tongues 
of  his  fellxivv-mortals  to  pour  forth  praises  worthy 
of  the  celestial  theme.  He  gives  a  tongue  to  uni- 
versal nature — he  awakens  heaven  and  earth  in 
the  song  of  exultation  th;it  the  world,  the  spiritual 
Israel,  is  redeemed: — "  ^i"g>  O  ye  heavens  ;  for 
the  Lord  hath  done  it :  shout,  ye  lower  parts  of 
the  earth  :  break  forth  into  singing,  ye  mountains, 
and  every  tree  therein  :  for  the  Lord  hath  redeemed 
Jacob,  and  glorified  himself  in  Israel." 

My  brethren,  we  surely  require  no  exhortations 
to  excite  in  our  bosoms  tiie  emotions  of  gratitude, 
to  engage  our  tongues  in  the  songs  of  praise.  We 
have  not,  like  the  prophet,  to  stretch  forward  our 
imaginations  to  distant  ages,  to  future  events:  we 
can  indeed  say,  without  the  ardent  stretch  of  an- 
ticipation, The  Lord  has  redeemed  Jacob,  the 
Lord  has  glorified  himself  in  Israel.  Throngh 
the  course  of  her  services  the  church-  has  pre- 
sented to  us,  from  the  records  of  divine  truth,  the 
history  of  that  redemption  which,  commencing  in 
the  eteraal  counsels  of  the  Godhead,  was  effected 
in  the  incarnation,  the  obedience,  the  sufferings, 
and  the  death  of  the  Son  of  God.  She  now  sets 
before  us  tlie  completion  of  these  great  events,  in 
the  annunciation  that  Christ,  who  was  dead,  is 
risen  again,  and  liveth  for  ever :  the  sacrifice  of 
his  cross  lias  been  accepted ;  the  domains  of  death 
lie  has  passed  in  triumph ;  the  strong  holds  of  the 


IN  OUR  REDEMPTION.  S2S 

^idversary  he  has  subdued  ;  the  grave  he  has  de- 
spoiled of  its  victory ;  the  keys  of  death  and  hell 
he  holds  for  ever ;  and  he  opens  the  kingdom  of 
'heaven  to  all  believers. 

*'  Sing  thf'n,  O  ye  heavens ;  for  the  Lord  hath  done 
it :  shout,  ye  lower  parts  of  the  earth  :  break  forth 
into  sini^ing,  ye  mountains,  and  every  tree  therein: 
for  the  Lord  h  ith  redeemed  Jacob,  and  glorified 
himself  in  Israel." 

The  display  of  the  divine  glory  in  our  redemp- 
tion, is  the  theme  which  the  prophet  calls  on  uni- 
versal nature  to  celebrate. 

It  was  planned  in  the  eternal  counsels  of  the 
Godhead; 

It  commenced  in  the  incarnatioii  of  the  Son  of 
God  ; 

It  was  prosecuted  in  his  spotless  life  and  perfect 
obedience ; 

It  was  effected  by  his  sufferings  and  death;  and, 

Jt  is  assured  to  us  by  the  event  of  this  day — his 
resurrection  from  the  dead. 

Let  us  contemplate  this  wonderful  series  of 
events,  that  our  gratitude  may  be  excited,  and  that 
we  may  join,  with  all  our  powers  and  affections,  in 
the  exulting  triumph  with  which  the  prophet  cele- 
brates this  great  redemption. 

1.  This  redemption  was  planned  in  the  eternal 
counsels  of  the  Godhead. 

When  the  world  was  to  be  framed,  and  when 
man  was  to  be  created  to  possess  and  to  enjoy  it, 
we  behold  the  persons  of  the  adorable  Godhead 
counselling  together  concerning  the  mighty  work; 
"  Let  us  make  man  in  our  image,  after  our  like- 
ness."    And  when  this  world;  created  in  order,  in 


324  THE  DISPLAY  OF  THE  DIVINE  GLORY 

beauty,  and  in  glory,  was  defaced  and  ruined  by 
the  disobedience  of  man  ;  and  when  man  himself, 
the  lord  of  creation,  became  subject  to  sin,  to  sor- 
row, and  to  death, — his  restoration  to  holiness  and 
blisvs,  no  less  than  his  first  creation,  occupied  the 
divine  counsels.    Prophetic  vision  unfolds  the  mys- 
terious scene,  and  leads  us,  as  it  were,  into  the 
presence  of  the  persons  of  the  Godhead.     "Who 
will  find  a  ransom  1"  is  the  language  in  which  in- 
spiration represents  the  Almighty  Father  as  pre- 
paring  the   merciful   work   of  man's   redemption. 
Who  among  the  glorious  hosts  that  surround  the 
throne  of  the  Eternal,  will  undertake  to  vindicate 
the  honour  of  his  violated  government,  and  to  sa- 
tisfy the  demands  of  the  holiness  and  justice  of  the 
Sovereign  of  the  universe!     Who  among  the  most 
exalted  seraphs  will  come  forward  to  sustain  those 
penalties  which  are  due  to  the  sins  of  the  whole 
hum m  race,  and  thus  find  their  ransom  from  the 
everlastinor  bondage  of  sin  and  death?     Alas!  the 
immense  load  of  human  guilt  was  not  to  be  sus- 
tained by  any  created   being :   the  virtues   of  the 
brightest  seraph  would  be  found  wanting,  if  scru- 
tinized by  the  holiness  of  his  Maker ;  and  before 
thf  justice  of  the  Eternal,  in  its  inflexible  rigour, 
not  even  the  cherubim  could  stand.     The  eternal 
Son,  "  he  saw  that  there  was  no  man — he  won- 
dered that  there  was  no  intercessor."     The  vindi- 
cation of  the  violated  laws  of  the  Almighty  Father, 
the  redemption  of  a  world  doomed  to  destruction, 
appeared  objects  not  unworthy  of  the  divine  per- 
fections of  the  Son  of  God.     "  Lo,  I  come  to  do 
thy  will,   O  God,"  is  the  language  which,  in  the 
counsels  of  the  Godhead,  inspiration  ascribes  to  the 
Son.     The  work  of  redemption  is  thus  planned ; 


IN  OUR  REDEMPTION.  325 

and  anticipating  its  accomplishment,  the  glad  tid- 
ings burst  forth  from  the  celestial  host — The  world 
is  redeemed  !  At  the  display  of  the  divine  power 
and  glory  that  created  the  world,  "  the  morning 
stars  sang  together,  and  all  the  sous  of  God  shouted 
for  joy."  Surely  not  less  universal,  not  less  ardent 
the  exultation,  in  those  pure  and  perfect  spirits 
that  continually  surround  the  divine  Majesty,  at 
the  view  of  the  infinite  wisdom,  love,  and  power 
which  planned  the  redemption  of  a  fallen  world — 
which  thus  devised  the  mode  by  which  pardon 
could  be  extended  to  the  sinner  without  sanction- 
ing his  sin,  and  favour  to  the  offending  rebel  against 
the  divine  government,  without  weakening  its  au- 
thority, impeaching  iis  holiness,  or  subverting  its 
justice.  In  the  nature  of  the  divine  Persons  thus 
counselling  for  man's  redemption,  it  is  not  for  him, 
blind,  and  erring,  and  impotent — it  is  not  for  an- 
gels, it  is  not  for  cherubim  or  seraphim,  for  a  mo- 
ment to  look — the  inrer  glory  of  the  divine  nature 
burns  with  a  blaze,  f  I  may  so  with  reverence 
speak,  too  intense,  tt»o  radiant  for  finite  vision. 
But  in  its  manifestations,  in  its  outer,  its  more 
distant  rays,  shining  oa  the  plan  of  man's  redemp- 
tion, all  is  mildness,  atid  softness,  and  peace :  ho- 
liness, and  justice,  and  mercy  are  seen  blending 
their  sacred  influencesj  and  conveying  light  and  joy 
in  that  truth  which  the  counsels  of  the  Godhead 
alone  could  render  possible — God  can  be  just,  and 
yet  justify  the  sinner. 

The  redemption  of  man,  thus  planned  in   the 
counsels  of  the  Godhead,  was, 

2.  Commenced  in  the  incarnation  of  the  eternal 
Son. 


526  THE  DISPLAY  OP  THE  DIVINE  GLORY 

The  nature  of  man  was  to  be  assumed;  for  maa 
was  subject  to  the  law,  and   man   must  obey  it : 
man  had  transgressed  the  hiw,   and  in  the  same 
nature  must  its  penalties  be  sustained  ;  in  the  na- 
ture which  had  sinned  was  the  atonement  to  be 
made.     "  A  body  therefore  was  prepared"  for  the 
Son  of  God,  that  in  it  he  might  render  that  obedi- 
ence which  would  satisfy  the  claims  of  the  violated 
law,  and  be  a  perfect  model  for  our  imitation.   "  A 
body  was  prepared"  for  the  Son  of  God,  that  thus 
sustaining  our  infirmities,  we  might  be  assured  that 
he  is  touched  wiih  a  feeling  for  them,  and  is  a  com- 
passionate High  Priest,  not  only  able,  but  willing 
to  succour  us.     And  "  a  body  was  prepared"  for 
the  Son  of  God,  that  by  his  mighty  power  the  fallen 
nature  of  man  might,  in  his  person,  pass  through 
the  grave  and  gate  of  death  to  a  joyful  resurrec- 
tion.    What  unsearchable  wisdom,  what  infinite 
love  does  the  mystery  of  tlie  incarnation  exhibit! 
At  this  display  of  the  divine  mercy,  when  the  Son 
of  God  took  upon  hitn  out  nature,  and  was  born 
the  Saviour  Christ  the  Lore,  well  might  the  angels 
leave  their  seats  of  bliss  to  chant  forth  to  the  world 
the  songs  of  triumph — "  Gbry  to  God  in  the  high- 
est, peace  on  earth,  good  vill  to  men." 

3.  The  redemption  of  man  was  prosecuted  in 
the  spotless  life,  and  perfect  obedience,  and  holy 
instructions  of  the  incarnate  Son  of  God. 

It  was  an  obedience  which  left  no  duty  unper- 
formed, no  sacrifice  un[)aid :  it  was  an  obedience 
which,  not  content  with  an  external  compliance 
with  the  law,  entered  into  its  pure  and  rigorous 
spirit — not  satisfied  with  the  discharge  of  the  high- 
est duties,  it  descended  to  the  most  minute — not 


IN  OUR  REDEMPTIOIS'.  32t 

founding  its  claims  on  one  particular  virtue,  it  ex- 
hibited an  illustrious  pattern  of  them  all:  it  was 
an  obedience  which,  so  far  from  lowering  the  stand- 
ard of  duty,  exalted  its  power,  its  obligation,  and 
its  sanctions  :  the  obedience  of  the  Son  of  God^ 
it  could  sustain  the  scrutiny  of  that  holiness  which 
discerns  imperfection  in  the  most  exalted  of  humari 
beings. 

In  entire  conformity  with  the  spotless  life  and 
perfect  obedience  of  the  Saviour,  were  the  instruc- 
tions which  flowed  from  his  lips  :  while  they  ex- 
alted the  rules  of  duty,  they  made  such  clear  and 
terrible  appeals  to  the  understanding  and  the  heart, 
that  even  the  rage  of  his  enemies  was  disarmed, 
and  the  accusations  of  malice  were  changed  into 
the  loud  homage  of  praise—"  Never  rnan  spake 
like  this  man."  Spotless  in  all  his  actions;  gentle, 
unoffending,  unassuming,  yet  firm,  bojd,  and  un- 
daunted when  duty  urged,  even  his  enemies  poured 
forth  their  tribute  to  his  virtues — "  lie  hath  done 
all  things  well."  Yes;  would  we  behold  truth  and 
virtue  displayed  in  celestial  splendour,  and  the 
divine  perfections  shining  forth  in  transcendent 
brightness,  w^e  must  contemplate  him  who  ap- 
peared, in  all  his  precepts  and  in  all  his  actions, 
''  the  brightness  of  the  Father's  glory,  full  of  grace 
and  truth."  He  thus  rendered  that  perfect  obedi- 
ence to  the  law  which  man  was  unable  to  render, 
and  released  man  from  subjection  to  its  rigorous 
demands,  and  rendered  him  capable  of  its  rewards. 

4.  Our  redemption,  thus  prosecuted  in  the  spot- 
less life  and  perfect  obedience  of  the  Son  of  God, 
was  efiecied  by  his  sutlerings  and  death. 

Sufferings  and  death  were  the  penalties  of  the 


•if 

328  THE  DISPLAY  OF  THE  DIVINE  GLORY 

violated  law  of  God — and  sufferings  and  death  the 
Son  of  God,  in  man's  nature,  the  representative  of 
his  guilt,  endured,  that  he  might  discharge  man 
from  punishment.  It  was  thus  that  he  "  bore  our 
sins  and  carried  our  sorrows." 

You  have  listened,  during  the  past  week,  in  the 
services  of  the  church,  to  the  simple  but  affecting 
history  of  the  passion  of  your  Saviour.  You  be- 
held the  cup  of  sorrow  presented  to  him.  "  Father, 
if  it  be  possible,  let  this  cup  pass  from  me :  never- 
theless, not  my  will,  but  thine  be  done."  He  drank 
of  that  cup  of  trembling,  into  which  were  poured 
the  phials  of  divine  wrath.  Fear,  dismay,  agony  un- 
utterable filled  his  soul.  For,  brethren,  let  us  not 
forget,  that,  though  the  Son  of  God,  he  was  also 
man — man  capable  of  pain  and  agony,  like  our- 
selves. And  what  must  have  been  that  agony, 
which  started,  through  every  pore  of  his  body, 
drops  of  blood  ^  What  must  have  been  that  dark- 
ness under  which  the  Son  of  the  Father  cried  out, 
"  My  God,  my  God,  why  hast  thou  forsaken  me  T' 

These  agonies  display  the  infinite  demerit  of  the 
sin  which  produced  them.  Let  us  contemplate 
them  with  abhorrence  of  our  iniquities,  lest  our 
unrepented  sins  expose  us  to  this  awful  indigna- 
tion. And  let  us  contemplate  the  sufferings  and 
death  of  the  Son  of  God  with  holy  hope ;  for  they 
are  the  price  of  our  redemption.  By  his  stripes 
we  are  healed. 

Yes,  my  brethren ;  he  whom  we  lately  beheld 
extended  on  the  cross,  and  whom  we  lately  followed 
with  mourning  hearts  to  the  sepulchre,  is  now  ex- 
alted to  be  a  Prince  and  Saviour,  to  give  repentance 
and  remission  of  sins.  Of  this  God  has  given  tri- 
umphant assurance,  in  that  he  hath  raised  his  Son 


IN  OUR  REDEMPTION.  52D 

Jesus  Christ  from  the  dead.  He  has  shaken  oft* 
the  garments  of  corruption,  and  shines  forth  in  the 
brightness  of  the  Father's  glory.  He  has  loosed 
the  bands  of  the  grave,  and  broken  the  sceptre  of 
the  prince  of  darkness,  and  stands  forth  the  King 
of  the  kings  of  the  earth,  the  Conqueror  of  death 
and  hell.  "  O  death,  he  hath  been  thy  plagues ; 
O  grave,  he  has  been  thy  destruction."  How  illus- 
trious the  glory  which  encircled  the  Saviour  when 
he  forsook  the  dark  mansions  of  the  tomb !  How 
awful  that  majesty  before  which  the  hosts  of  dark- 
ness fled  dismayed,  and  that  power  which  bound 
in  everlasting  chains  death  and  the  grave !  How 
worthy  of  triumphant  adoration  that  love  which 
opens  the  kingdom  of  heaven  to  all  believers,  and 
prepares  for  them  the  seats  of  everlasting  glory ! 
"  Sing,  O  ye  heavens ;  for  the  Lord  hath  done  it : 
shout,  ye  lower  parts  of  the  earth  :  break  forth  into 
singing,  ye  mountains,  O  forest,  and  every  tree 
therein  :  for  the  Lord  hath  redeemed  Jacob,  and 
glorified  himself  in  Israel." 

When  the  whole  world  is  represented  as  interested 
in  that  glorious  plan  of  redemption  which  restores 
man  from  the  ruins  of  the  fall,  and  places  him  in 
that  new  world  wherein  dwelleth  righteousness— 
when  the  heavens  and  the  earth  are  summoned  to 
bear  their  part  in  the  chorus  of  thanksgiving  to 
the  world's  Redeemer,  to  the  Son  of  God  rising  in 
triumph  from  the  tomb — let  not  those  who  are  the 
immediate  objects  of  these  transcendent  blessings, 
let  not  "  Jacob,  whom  he  hath  redeemed,  and 
Israel,  whom  he  hath  glorified,"  remain  indiflferent 
and  insensible :  let  not  these  glorious  and  sublime 
truths,  because  they  transcend  our  feeble  compre- 
hension, be  slighted  or  rejected.    We  find  in  them 

Vol.  III.  42 


S30  THF  DISPLAY  OF  THE  DIVINE  GLOKt 

the  means  and  pledges  of  virtue,  and  peace,  and  fe- 
Jicity,  which  nalure  and  reason  cannot  supply ;  and 
it  is  therefore  our  highest  wisdom  to  embrace  them 
on  account  of  their  practical  ben<'fits,  inscrutable 
as  m^^y  be  their  speculative  character.  Many  are 
the  feelings  within  us  which  long  for  immortality; 
many  are  the  feelings  within  us  which  turn  back 
with  horror  from  the  dark  thought  of  the  attpJhila- 
tion  of  being;  many  are  the  suggestions  with  which 
reason  aims  to  fortify  those  hopes  of  an  endless 
existence  with  which  nature  would  fain  liidit  up  the 
darkness  of  that  tomb.  But  on  a  subject  so  tre- 
mendous, so  interesting  as  the  grave  and  what  is 
bi  yond  it,  the  anxious  soul  seeks  relief  from  all  her 
doubts  and  all  her  fears  in  some  fixed  assurance 
of  the  Being  who  made,  and  who  is  to  judge  her. 
Amidst  those  apprehensions  which  the  sense  of 
guilt  inspires,  she  looks  with  trembling  solicitude 
for  some  mode  devised  by  infinite  wisdom  and 
power,  and  accepted  by  infinite  holiness  and  jus- 
tice, by  which  she  may  escape  the  displeasure  of 
her  eternal  Judge,  which  conscience  tells  her  she 
deserves,  and  secure  that  immortal  felicity  of  which 
she  feels  her  purest  services  can  never  render  her 
worthy.  This  mode  of  deliverance  and  accept- 
ance, this  assurance  of  life  and  imm(»rtality,  are 
proclaimed  by  Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of  God,  and 
by  him  only.  Satisfying  divine  justice,  vindicating 
the  divine  holiness,  sustaining  the  penalties  of  the 
violated  law,  he  hath  removed  every  obstacle  which 
the  just  and  holy  character  and  government  of  the 
Ruler  of  the  universe  could  oppose  to  tlie  pardon 
of  his  rebellious  creatures ;  and  having  himself 
burst  the  bands  of  the  grave,  he  proclaims  with 
power — "  1  am  the  resuneuuon  uud  the  life :  he 


IN  OUR  REDEMPTION.  o31 

that  believeth  in  mo,  though  he  were  dear),  yet  shall 
he  live :  and  whosoever  liveth  and  believeih  in  me^ 
shall  never  die." 

Every  feeling  of  nature  would  wish  to  cherish 
as  true,  the  assurance  that  life  and  immortality  are 
brought  to  light  by  the  resurrection  of  Clirist  from 
the  dead  :  it  claims  our  belief  by  an  evidence  which 
wilful  prejudice  and  obstinnte  incredulity  can  ahme 
withstand.  The  disciples  of  a  man  crucified  as  a 
malefactor,  they  who  forsook  their  dying  Master, 
suddenly  became  bold,  courageous,  undismayed  in 
danger,  in  persecution,  in  death  :  illiterate,  feeble, 
contemned,  they  established  a  pure,  and  holy,  and 
self-denying  religion  «m  the  ruins  of  those  super- 
stitions and  corrupt  systems  which  held  so  firm  a 
hold  on  the  prejudices,  the  power,  the  pride,  and 
the  passions  of  mankind.  This  must  have  been 
the  Lord's  doing:  this  moral  conquest,  this  con- 
version of  a  corrupt  and  opposing  world  to  a  pure 
faith  and  a  holy  practice,  could  have  been  efl^ected 
only  by  divine  power,  that  divme  power  by  which 
the  Master  whom  they  beheld  crucified  was  raised 
from  the  dead.  This  was  the  truth  forced  on  their 
own  tardy  belief,  and  which  they  attested  by  signs, 
and  wonders,  and  mighty  works,  and  to  the  belief 
of  which  they  converted  an  unwilling  and  incredu- 
lous world. 

Brethren,  let  us  then  seriously  consider,  if  Christ 
be  indeed  raised  from  the  dead,  and  is  seated  in 
power  and  majesty,  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of 
lords,  great  will  be  the  peril  of  rejecting  or  neg- 
lecting his  offers  of  mercy,  great  the  peril  of  re- 
maining in  rebellion  against  his  righteous  sway  : 
and  in  rebellion  ajjainst  his  righteous  sway  are  all 
who  have  not,  by  the  power  of  his  grace,  become 


332  THE  DISPLAY  OF  THE  DIVINE  GLORY 

dead  to  sin,  and  new  creatures  in  holiness.  "  God, 
who  at  sundry  times,  and  in  divers  manners,  spake 
in  time  past  unto  the  fathers  by  the  prophets,  hath 
in  these  last  days  spoken  unto  us  by  his  Son,  whom 
lie  hath  appointed  heir  of  all  things,  by  whom  also 
he  made  the  worlds."*     "  Great  is  the  mystery  of 
godliness:  God  manifest  in  the  flesh,  justified  in 
the  Spirit,  seen  of  angels,  preached  unto  the  Gen- 
tiles, believed  on  in  the  world,  received  up  into 
glory."t    '*  Put  to  death  in  the  flesh,  but  quickened 
in  the  Spirit,"  he  is  declared  to  be  "  the  Son  of  God 
with  power,  by  the  resurrection  from  the  dead." 
Let  us  not  then  neglect  this  wonderful  counsel  of 
God  for  our  salvation ;  let  us  not  be  unaffected  by 
this  most  stupendous  display  of  divine  power,  and 
love,   and   mercy ;   let  us  not  reject  the  offers   of 
peace  and  salvation  from  the  God  whom  we  have 
offended,  and  the  Sovereign  who  is  finally  to  judge 
us.     But,  on  the  contrary,  let  us  gratefully  adore 
the  majesty,  the  mercy,  and  the  grace  of  the  God- 
head in  the  plan  of  redemption,  effected  in  the  in- 
carnation, the  obedience,  the  sufferings,  the  death, 
and  the  triumphant  resurrection  of  our  Lord  and 
Saviour  Jesus  Christ.     Let  it  be  our  great  object 
to  be  conformed  to  the  likeness  of  his  death,  in 
mortifying  all  our  corrupt  affections,  and  to  expe- 
rience the   power  of  his  resurrection  in  living  a 
new  and  holy  life,  that  we  may  enjoy  the  new  and 
lively  hopes  of  everlasting  glory  which  his  resur- 
rection assures  to  all  true  believers.     And  to  tes- 
tify our  belief  in  our  once  crucified  but  now  highly 
exalted  Saviour — to  show  forth  our  confidence,  our 
gratitude,  our  love  to  him  who  died  for  us,  and  for 
us  rose  again — let  us  humbly  and  joyfully  advance 

if  Heb.  i.  1.  t  1  Tim.  iii.  IG. 


IN  OUR  REDEIMPTION.  333 

to  that  holy  supper  which  he  instituted,  and  receive 
the  pledges  of  his  mercy,  iiis  grace,  and  his  ever- 
lasting favour :  there  let  us  keep  the  feast,  in  me- 
mory of  Christ,  that  very  Paschal  Lamb  who  was 
offered  for  us,  and  hath  taken  away  the  sin  of  the 
world — who  by  his  death  hath  destroyed  death, 
and  by  his  rising  to  life  again,  hath  restored  to  us 
everlasting  life :  there  let  us  proclaim,  with  holy 
triumph,  that  Christ  hath  risen  from  the  dead,  and 
become  the  first  fruits  of  them  that  slept ;  and 
there  let  us  receive  the  pledges  of  that  hope,  at 
once  our  triumph  and  our  joy — our  triumph  over 
the  doubts  and  the  errors  of  this  mortal  life — our 
joy  amidst  the  changes,  the  sorrows,  and  the  trials 
of  this  uncertain  world — that  when  Christ,  who  is 
our  life,  shall  appear,  we  also  shall  appear  with  him 
in  glory,  and  be  made  like  unto  him  in  his  eternal 
and  glorious  kingdom. 


SERMON   XXVIII. 


THE  REASONS  OF  JOY  IN  CONTEMPLATING  THE  DAY  OF 
THE  LORD. 


Psalm  cxviii.  24. 

This  is  the  day  which  the  Lord  hath  made ;  we  will  rejoice  and 
be  glad  in  it. 

This,  my  brethren,  is  the  voice  of  triumph  which, 
on  the  rec<  111  festival  of  Esther,  was  heard  in  the 
church.  What  a  different  scene,  even  to  the  eye 
of  the  world,  does  the  day  of  Christ's  resurrection 
present,  from  that  which  marked  the  day  of  his 
crucifixion  !  We,  my  brethren,  even  on  that  day, 
penetrated  by  faith  the  cloud  of  humiliation  which 
enveloped  our  Lord  and  Master,  and  beheld  his 
cross  and  passion  but  as  the  preludes  to  his  glori- 
ous resurrection — to  the  triumphs  of  this  day.  But 
the  incredulous  world  could  only  have  seen  in  Jesus 
Christ  a  malefactor  suffering  the  ignominious  death 
of  the  cross. 

What  is  the  spectacle  which  the  day  of  Christ's 
resurrection  presents'?  The  sepulchre  to  which 
the  body  of  this  malefactor  was  consigned,  the  en- 
trance of  which  was  sealed  by  the  seal  of  the  Ro- 
man governor,  and  which  was  guarded  by  the 
implacable  enemies  of  Christ,  is  open — the  body 
of  Jesus  is  gone.  Even  the  incredulous  world  m  ust 
adopt  the  language  of  the  faithful — "  The  Lord  is 
risen  indeed."  "  This  is  the  day  which  the  Lord 
Imth  made  :  let  us  rejoice  and  be  glad." 


REASONS  OF  JOY,  &C.  335 

Yes,  my  brethren,  this  one  circumstance  alone, 
if  there  is  faith  to  be  given  to  what  no  man  in  his 
senses  will  doubt — historical  testimony — this  one 
circumstance,  that,  the  body  of  the  crucified  Jesus 
disappeared  from  that  tomb  which  his  vigilant  ene- 
mies guarded  with  the  express  purpose  of  prevent- 
ing its  being  stolen  away — this  one  circumstance 
proves  that  he  must  have  burst  the  bands  of  the 
grave  through  divine  power — that  God  raised  him 
from  the  dead. 

But  we  have  other  evidence  of  this  glorious 
event.  It  is  morally  imptissiblc  that  the  apostles 
should  violate  every  dictate  of  common  sense,  and 
every  feeling  of  interest,  by  enduring  persecutions 
and  privations  without  a  parallel,  in  the  service  of 
a  crucified  impostor — in  the  testimony  that  their 
Master  had  risen  ;  that  they  had  seen  him,  con- 
Tersed  with  him,  handled  him,  and  associated  with 
him  for  a  considerable  time — when,  in  fact,  his 
body  was  rottins^  in  the  grave.  It  is  morally  im- 
possil)le  that  they  should  have  submitted  to  perse- 
cution and  death  in  attestation  of  an  event  which 
they  knetv  had  never  happened  ;  that  they,  who, 
timid  and  cowardly,  forsook  their  Master  and  fled 
when  he  was  taken  and  crucified,  should  suddenly 
become  bold  and  undaunted  in  proclaiming  what 
they  knew  to  be  false — that  this  crucified  malefac- 
tor had  risen  from  the  dead.  We  shall  discover  an 
incredulity  which  sets  common  sense  at  defiance, 
if  we  can  believe  that  these  unlettered,  friendless, 
and  despised  fishermen  of  Galilee  could,  by  their 
own  unassisted  eftorts,  induce  the  Jew  to  forsake 
the  magnificent  ceremonies  of  his  law,  and  the 
Pagan  to  renounce  his  vices,  and  the  splendid, 
wanton,  and  sensual  worship  that  allured  him  in 


SS6  REASONS  OF  JOY  IN  CONTEaiFLATING 

the  temples  of  his  gods,  in  order  to  take  up  the 
cross  of  an  outcast  Nazarene.  It  would  be  the 
extreme  of  incredulity  to  beli(?ve  that  the  stupen- 
dous truth,  that  the  crucified  Je^us  was  risen  from 
the  dead  and  exalted  to  universal  dominion,  should 
almost  immediately  find  its  way  into  the  remotest 
regions  of  the  known  world,  and  become  the  glory 
and  the  consolation  of  the  learned  and  the  great, 
as  well  as  of  the  poor  and  the  ignorant,  unless  it 
had  been  enforced  by  the  power  of  the  Most 
High. 

Of  the  day  of  Christ's  resurrection  we  may  then 
say,  in  the  language  with  which  the  inspired  psalm- 
ist eulogized  it — "  This  is  the  day  which  the  Lord 
hath  made ;  we  will  rejoice  and  be  glad."  We 
rejoice, 

1.  Because,  by  his  resurrection,  the  scandal  of 
the  cross  of  Christ  is  removed. 

•  Certainly  the  humiliation  in  which  Christ  ap- 
peared was  not  calculated  to  conciliate  the  favour 
of  mankind.  Poverty,  obscurity,  suffering,  are  not 
the  passports  to  their  applause.  Pride  of  birth^ 
elevation  of  station,  and  a  course  marked  by  ease, 
by  wealth,  by  splendour,  and  by  deeds  of  glory, 
are  the  means  of  exciting  human  favour  and  com- 
manding human  applause.  Jesus  Christ  had  none 
of  these,  with  which  to  win  the  hearts  of  men. 
Humble  in  his  birth,  poor  and  suffering  in  his  life, 
he  died  the  death  of  a  malefactor.  The  world  be- 
held only  darkness,  only  scandal  in  the  cross.  But 
when  Jesus  Christ  arose  from  the  grave,  he  sur- 
rounded that  cross  with  splendour  and  with  glory. 
The  Victim  who  suffered  on  it  is  not  a  malefactor 
smitten  of  God,  but  the  favourite  of  heaven,  who 


THE  DAY  OP  THE  LORD.  387 

has  vanquished  death,  and  is  crowned  with  honoun 
We  rejoice, 

2.  Because  the  resurrection  of  Christ  authorizes 
our  confidence  in  him  as  a  Teacher  sent  from 
God. 

It  is  indeed  most  contrary  to  human  calculation, 
that  a  messenger  from  heaven,  on  the  most  benign 
errand  that  could  bring  down  one  of  its  exalted 
host,  should  appear  in  the  character  of  the  most 
humble  of  the  tenants  of  the  earth,  and,  marking 
his  course  by  tears  and  sorrow,  should  descend 
from  the  cross  to  the  tomb.  But  how  has  God 
confounded  the  wisdom  of  this  world  !  The  cloud 
of  humiliation  that  covered  the  Saviour,  rendered 
more  illustrious  the  glory  of  his  resurrection,  and 
made  more  striking  this  attestation  of  God  to  the 
truth  of  his  mission.  "  He  was  crucified  out  of 
weakness,''^  saith  the  apostle ;  "  he  liveth  by  the 
power  of  God"  He  foretold  what  the  language 
of  prophecy  had  pointed  out  as  the  characteristic 
of  the  Messiah,  that  he  should  be  crucified,  and 
should  rise  again.  Contrary  to  all  human  calcu- 
lation, and  certainly  above  all  human  power,  the 
prediction  was  verified :  Jesus  Christ  was  raised 
from  the  dead.  He  could  have  been  thus  raised 
only  by  the  power  of  God.  Either,  then,  we  must 
blasphemously  put  the  seal  of  God  to  an  imposture, 
or  acknowledge  that  the  Gospel  of  Jesus  Christ  is 
from  above  ;  that  all  which  he  proclaimed,  all  which 
he  commanded,  all  which  he  promised,  all  which 
he  threatened,  are  armed  with  the  authority  and 
sanctioned  by  the  voice  of  the  Most  High.  We 
Tejoice, 

Vol.  hi,  43 


338  REASONS  OF  JOY   IN  CONTEMPLATING 

3.  For  the  resurrection  of  Christ  proved  that  he 
is,  vvh;ii  he  claimed  to  be,  a  divine  person — the 
Son  of  God. 

It  was  the  character  of  the  Messiah  predicted  by 
the  prophets,  that  he  was  to  be  the  Lord  our 
righteousness.  As  "  the  Lord,"  this  messenger  of 
tlje  covenant  was  to  "  come  to  his  temple."  And 
corresponding  with  the  predictions  concerning 
hi-n,  and  witli  the  magnificent  preparations  for 
his  comii^g,  to  which  all  the  divine  dispensations 
pointed  from  the  beginning  of  the  world,  were 
many  of  the  circumstances  of  his  appearance.  His 
incarnation  by  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost;  the 
praises  of  the  celestial  legions  at  his  birth  ;  the 
new  star  that  proclaimed  his  glory  in  the  East; 
the  voice  from  heaven  acknowledging  him  to  be 
the  beloved  Son  of  God  ;  the  transfiguration  on 
Mount  Tabor,  when  the  divine  glory  encircled 
him;  and  even  the  hill  of  Calvary,  which,  the  scene 
as  it  was  of  his  ignominy,  became,  in  the  convul- 
sions of  nature,  in  the  shrouding  of  the  lights  of 
heaven,  in  the  opening  of  the  tombs,  in  the  rending 
of  the  vail  of  the  temple,  the  theatre  of  his  glory 
■ — nil  these  prove  that  Jesus  Christ  is  more  than 
the  niost  exalted  of  men  :  they  confirm  his  own 
actions,  when  in  his  own  name,  and  with  no  deri- 
vative or  dependent  power,  he  controls  nature  at 
his  will,  and  shows  that  he  is  nature's  Maker  and 
Lord  ;  they  confirm  his  own  declarations,  when  he 
assumes,  without  hesitation,  an  equality  with  God — 
before  all  things — one  with  the  Father. 

Still  one  thing  was  wanting  to  put  the  seal  of 
God  himself  to  the  divinity  of  Christ — his  resurrec- 
tion from  the  dead.  Committed,  as  he  undoubt- 
edly was,  to  the  tomb  as  a  malefactor,  and  yet 


THE  DAY  OF  THE  LORD.  339 

triumphantly  predicting  his  rising  again,  all  the 
evidences  of  his  divinity  afiorded  by  the  illustrious 
cirtuimstances  of  his  life,  by  his  actions,  by  his 
declarations,  would  have  passed  for  nothinof,  had 
the  prediction  not  been  fulfilled.  If  Jesus  Christ 
had  remained  in  the  grave  after  he  had  predicted 
his  triumph  over  it,  he  would  have  been  con- 
signed to  infamy  among  the  impostors  that  had 
deluded  the  world.  But  rising  from  the  grave,  he 
proves  that  he  is  the  Son  of  God  with  power: 
he  announces,  in  that  mighty  voif-e  by  which  he 
burst  the  barriers  of  the  tomb,  "  I  am  Alpha  and 
Omega,  the  beginning  and  the  ending,  the  first 
and  the  last,  the  Almighty."  "  I  am  he  that  liveth, 
and  was  dead  ;  and  behold,  I  am  alive  for  ev<T- 
more  ;  and  have  the  keys  of  death  and  heii."  We 
further,  then,  rejoice, 

4.  Because,  by  his  resurrection,  Jesiis  Christ 
was  constituted  the  Lord  and  Ruler  of  all  things, 
and  the  Judge  of  the  world. 

"  For  this  end,"  saith  the  apostle,  "  Christ  both 
died,  and  rose,  and  revived,  that  he  might  be  Lord 
both  of  the  dead  and  of  the  living."  "  God  will 
judge  the  world  in  righteousness  by  that  man  whom 
he  hath  ordained,  of  which  he  hath  given  assurance 
unto  all  men,  in  that  he  raised  him  from  the  dead." 
Partaker  of  the  glory  of  the  Father  before  the  world 
was,  as  the  Son  of  God,  Jesus  Christ  also,  before 
the  world  was,  possessed  universal  dominion.  In 
an  incomprehensible  manner,  but  for  a  purpose 
infinitely  beneficent — our  salvation  from  sin  and 
death — the  Son  of  God  assumed  the  body  that  was 
prepared  for  him,  united  himself  to  our  nature ; 
and  it  was  in  tiiis  his  human  nature,  it  was  as  the 


340  REASONS  OF  JOY  IN  CONTEMPLATING 

Son  of  man  that  his  resurrection  exalted  him  to 
be  the  Ruler  and  the  Judge  of  the  world.     This 
exaltation  was  the  consequence  and  the  reward  of 
his  passion :  "  For  the  suffering  of  death,"  saith 
the  apostle,  "  Jesus  is  crowned  with  glory  and  ho- 
nour."    Having  paid,  by  his  most  precious  blood, 
our  ransom  to  divine  justice,  he  exercises  dominion 
over  us  in  right  of  purchase.    Having  achieved,  by 
the  power  of  his  grace,  our  deliverance  from  the 
captivity  of  sin  and  Satan,  his  dominion  over  us  is 
confirmed  also  by  the  right  of  conquest.     To  this 
dominion,   the  reward   of  his   sufferings,  he  was 
visibly  exalted  at  his  resurrection.     Then,  in  his 
human  nature,  he  was  set  as  the  King  on  the  "  holy 
hill  of  Zion,"  not  merely  to  exercise   temporary 
dominion  over  man  whom  he  had  redeemed,  but 
to  possess  a  kingdom  endless  as  eternity,  and  ex- 
tensive as  the  universe.     For  it  was  the  decree  of 
the  Almighty  Father  concerning  the  Son,  as  Medi- 
ator— "  Thy  throne  endureth   for  ever  and  ever : 
thy  kingdom  is  an  everhisting  kingdom,  and  thy 
dominion  that  which  shall  not  be  destroyed."   "  At 
the  name  of  Jesus  every  knee  shall  bow,  of  things 
in  heaven,  and  things  in  earth,  and  things  under 
the  earth,  and  every  tongue  shall  confess  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  Lord."     For,  "  raised  from  the  dead,  he 
is  set  on  the  right  hand  of  the  Majesty  on  high,  far 
above  all  principality,  and  power,  and  might,  and 
dominion,  not  only  in  this  world,  but  in  that  which 
is  to  come ;  and  all  things  are  put  under  his  feet." 
And  "  all  power  in  heaven  and  earth"  is  thus  given 
unto  the  Son  of  man,  in  order  that  he  may  protect 
and  bless  his  church  and  people — that  he  may  de- 
liver them  from  their  enemies — and  finally  coming 
as  the  King  of  kings  and  Lord  of  lords,  to  judge 


THE  DAY  OF  THE  LORD.  341 

ttie  world,  to  gather  out  of  his  kingdom  all  things 
that  offend,  may  exalt  his  faithful  people  to  glory- 
everlasting. 

*'  This  is  the  day  which  the  Lord  hath  made; 
we  will  rejoice  and  be  glad," 

5.  For  the  event  which  we  this  day  commemo- 
rate, assures  us  of  our  victory  over  sin,  of  pardon 
for  its  guilt,  of  deliverance  from  its  bondage. 

That  man  is  a  sinner,  and  that,  as  a  sinner,  he 
must  be  obnoxious  to  the  divine  displeasure,  are 
truths  for  which  we  want  no  more  than  that  testi- 
mony which  experience  and  reason  abundantly  fur- 
nish ;  but  how  this  divine  justice  is  to  be  propi- 
tiated, and  how,  depraved  and  guilty,  he  is  to  be 
restored  to  the  divine  favour,  are  inquiries  which 
the  Almighty  Lawgiver,  Sovereign,  and  Judge,  to 
whom  man  is  accountable,  can  alone  resolve  ;  and 
for  which,  therefore,  we  nust  look  to  the  revela- 
tion of  his  holy  word.  There  we  behold  Jesus 
Christ,  as  the  representalive  of  guilty  man,  sus- 
taining the  burden  of  sin ;  we  behold  him  in  the 
agonies  of  death  incurring  its  penalties.  But  what 
assurance  does  that  cross  on  which  he  thus  suffers 
for  our  sins,  afford  that  the  stonement  there  making 
is  accepted  by  that  righteous  Judge,  whose  holiness, 
and  justice,  and  authority  inflexibly  demand  it? 
The  cross  gives  no  signs  of  mercy :  the  lightnings 
of  vengeance  blaze  around  it.  On  the  cross  Jesus 
Christ  expires  as  ouq  forsaken  by  his  God — as  one 
forsaken  by  his  God  he  is  committed  to  the  tomb. 
It  is  from  that  tomb  the  voice  of  mercy  issues — 
"  The  Lord  has  risen."  "  Christ  was  delivered  for 
our  offences,  he  was  raised  for  our  justification." 
"  It  is  God  that  justifieth,  who  is  he  that  con- 


342  REASONS  Of  JOY  IN  CONTEWPLATIIVG 

demneth]"  "It  is  Christ  who  died,  yea  rather, 
who  is  risen  again."  "  God,  who  hath  quickened 
us  together  with  Christ,  hath  forgiven  us  our  tres- 
passes." By  this  act  of  his  power  God  testifies 
his  acceptance  of  Christ's  atonement ;  and  now 
the  penitent  sinner  can  listen  with  full  faith  to  the 
assurance  of  mercy — "  God  so  loved  the  world,  as 
to  give  his  only-begotten  Son,  that  whosoever  be- 
lieveth  in  him  should  not  perish,  but  should  have 
everlasting  life." 

Nor  is  this  a  vain  hope  ;  for  while  the  resurrec- 
tion of  Christ  is  a  pledge  of  onr  pardon,  it  is  also 
the  pledge  of  grace,  of  that  grace  whereby,  as  he 
died  and  rose  again  for  us,  so  we  may  die  unto  sin, 
and  rise  again  unto  righteousness,  and  thus  be 
partakers  of  tlie  jiilory  of  his  resurrection.  The 
greatest  of  victories  is  tiiat  ivhich  is  achieved  over 
the  body  of  sin,  that  bjdy  of  sin  which  inthrals 
all  men,  and  from  whic.i  the  greatest  strength  of 
intellect,  and  the  highest  human  power,  cannot 
deliver  those  who  are  ii  bondage  to  it.  This  vic- 
tory is  achieved  only  th"ough  the  power  of  Christ's 
resurrection,  which,  v^liile  it  imposes  on  us  the 
obligation  to  walk  in  newness  of  life  with  that 
Saviour  through  whom  we  are  risen  to  new  prin- 
ciples and  new  hopes,  inspires  us  with  the^  confi- 
dence, that  he  who  is  raised  from  the  dead  by  the 
glory  of  the  Father,  \Till  also  bless  us  in  turning 
every  one  of  us  away  from  his  inifpiities,  in  restor- 
ing us  from  darkness  unto  light,  and  from  the 
power  of  sin  and  Satan  unto  God.     We  rejoice, 

6.  For  the  resurrection  of  Christ  assures  us  of 
victory  over  the  world — arming  us  against  its  temp- 
tations, and  supporting  us  under  its  sorrows. 


THE  BAY  OF  THE  LORD.  345 

Christ,  raised  from  the  dead,  hath  become  our 
Almiglity  King  and  Ruler,  and  to  him  we  owe 
allegiance.  That  same  almighty  power  by  which. 
Jesus  overcame  death,  assures  to  all  his  faithful 
members,  to  all  true  beliei^ers,  that  they  shall  over- 
come the  world.  That  saipe  almighty  power  which 
raised  him  from  the  darkness  of  the  grave,  will 
raise  them  from  the  darkness  of  sorrow.  He  lives, 
to  be  their  Comforter,  their  Guide,  their  Saviour. 
When  temptation  assails,  and  sorrow  thre  itens  to 
overwhelm  them,  let  tliem  remember  that  they  are 
the  disciples  not  only  of  a  tempted  and  suffrring, 
but  of  a  risen  and  liiglily  exalted  Saviour;  and 
that,  after  his  resurrection,  he  became  vested  with 
all  power  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  for  the  purpose 
of  exerting  it  in  succouring  and  comforting  his 
faithful  people,  for  whom,  havin^r  been  tempted 
like  as  they  are,  he  is  touched  with  the  tenderest 
sympathy.  Whnt  temptfitions  are  too  strong  to  be 
overcome  by  those  whose  Leader  is  almighty? 
And  what  afflictions  can  depress  those  whose 
Friend  and  Conjforter — once,  like  them,  the  victim 
of  sorrow — is  as  full  of  tenderness  to  sympathize 
with  them,  as  he  is  of  power  to  relieve  them?  This 
is  the  consolation  whitdi  results  from  the  incom- 
prehensible union  of  the  divine  and  the  human 
nature  in  the  person  of  Christ:  as  man,  he  is  sen- 
sil)le  of  our  infirmities — as  God,  he  is  able  to 
relieve  them.  Jesus  (^hrist,  our  Friend,  the  Bro- 
ther of  our  nature,  is  risen,  almighty  in  power  and 
dominion,  to  succour  and  to  comfort  his  people. 
And  we  rejoice, 

7.  Lastly  Because  the  event  which  we  this  day 
celebrate,  assures  us  of  victory  over  death — 


344  REASONS  OF  JOY  L\  CONTEMPLATING 

Death,  our  last  and  terrible  enemy.  Brethren., 
is  he  not  terrible^  Ho  extinguishes  life  in  the 
darkness  of  the  grave — he  consigns  the  body  to 
corruption — his  domains  are  cheerless,  and  desti- 
tute of  hope.  But,  Cliristian,  thou  hast  no  need 
to  fear  this  enemy  of  thy  race — he  need  not  be 
terrible  to  thee :  the  resurrection  of  thy  Saviour 
assures  thee  of  victory  over  him.  Nature,  unen- 
lightened by  the  faith  of  Jesus,  shudders  at  the 
darkness  of  the  grave,  in  which  are  extinguished 
that  life  to  which  we  fondly  cling,  and  all  its 
powers,  its  hopes,  and  its  jojs.  But  why  shouldst 
ihou  shudder  at  it.  Christian  I  The  grave,  to  thee, 
is  that  paradise  to  which  thy  Saviour  went  with 
his  first  penitent  disciple,  his  companion  in  death, 
and  which  he  still  blesses  with  his  presence ;  and 
where  thy  spirit  shall  abide  in  all  the  ecstacy  of 
hope,  till  the  day  of  thy  full  redemption. 

Nature  shudders  at  the  destiny  which,  in  the 
tomb,  awaits  the  bod)' — where  the  worm  becomes 
its  couch,  and  the  earthworm  its  covering.  But 
hear.  Christian,  the  voice  which  issues  from  the 
sepulchre  of  Jesus — "  0  death,  I  have  been  thy 
plagues ;  O  grave,  I  haye  been  thy  destruction.'* 
"  The  bodies  of  those  which  sleep  in  Jesus,  will 
God  bring  with  him ;  and  their  corruptible  shall 
put  on  incorruption,  and  their  mortal  immortality." 

Nature  shudders  at  the  silence  which  reigns 
through  the  domains  cf  death.  For  aught  that 
reason  or  nature  can  cssure  us,  it  is  the  silence 
to  which  never  comes  the  voice  of  joy.  Reason 
and  nature  may  hope ;  but  what  are  faint  and 
feeble  hopes  to  sustain  the  soul,  doubting  and 
shuddering  at  the  silence,  the  dread  silence  of  the 
tomb'?     Christian,  he  who  holds  the  keys  of  death 


THE  DAY  OF  THE  LORD.  345 

and  hell,  proclaims  the  holy  assurance — "  I  am  the 
resurrection  and  the  life :  he  that  believeth  in  me, 
though  he  were  dead,  yet  shall  he  live :  and  who- 
soever liveth  and  believeth  in  me,  shall  never  die." 
The  silence  of  the  tomb,  Christian,  is  not  the 
silence  to  which  never  comes  the  voice  of  joy: 
the  strains  of  heaven  are  heard  in  it,  and  draw  the 
enraptured  soul  to  the  bosom  of  endless  felicity. 

Exalted  consummation  of  all  the  blessed  effects 
of  Christ's  resurrection  !  when,  in  glorified  bodies 
and  purified  souls,  we  shall  unite  in  the  hallelujahs 
of  heaven  before  the  throne  of  God.  Let  us  love 
and  serve  that  Redeemer  who,  by  his  resurrection 
from  the  dead,  hath  assured  to  us  these  exalted 
hopes.  Let  us  commemorate,  with  penitence  and 
faith,  in  the  symbols  of  the  altar,  the  sufferings 
and  victories  by  which  he  effected  our  redemption, 
and  there  celebrate  that  victory  over  death  which 
hath  assured  to  us  everlasting  life.  Let  us  live  to 
him  who  died  for  us  and  rose  again ;  and  then, 
through  his  power,  we  shall  pass  through  the  grave 
and  gate  of  death  to  a  joyful  resurrection,  and  be 
made  partakers  of  bliss,  both  in  body  and  soul,  in 
his  eternal  and  glorious  kingdom. 


Vol.  IIL  M 


SERM 


THE  EXCELLEi\X'i  OF  FAITH. 


John  xx.  29. 

Jfesus  saith  unto  liim,  Thomas,  because  thou  hast  seen  me,  thon 
hast  believed:  blbssfed  arc  they  that  have  nof  seen ,.  and  yet 
have  believed. 

The  apostles,  who  beheld  Christ  after  his  cru- 
cifixion and  burial,  were  satisfierl,  on  tlje  evidence 
of  their  senses,  that  he  had  risen  froin  the  dead. 
The  certainty  which  they  enjoyed  of  his  resurrec- 
tion was  not  so  properly  the  result  of  f<\\\\\  as  of 
knowledge.  What  we  sec,  we  know  to  be  true  : 
what  we  are  assured  of  on  sufficient  testimony,  we 
"believe  to  be  true.  The  evidence,  therefore,  which, 
arises  from  testimony,  though  a  sufficient  founda- 
tion for  faith,  reguhiting  onr  conduct  in  the  most 
important  events  of  life,,  and  producing  on  the 
"mind  full  conviction,  is  still  not  so  striking  nor  so 
strong  as  that  which  is  produced  by  our  senses^ 
and  which  leads  to  knowledge. 

Let  us  then  seriously  cot^itter  the  nature  of  tba!> 
faith  to  which  is  annexed  the  promise  of  salvatio.n, 
in  reference  to  the  exercises  of  the  understanding., 
to  the  dispositions  of  the  heart,  to  its  moral  effects, 
and  to  the  divine  agency  by  which  it  is  prod(jced. 

Those  of  the  apostles,  therefore,  who  saw  our 
blessed  Lord,  enjoyed  the  greatest  possible  cer- 
tainty of  his  resurrectitm.  But  Thomas  was  not 
present  whea  Christ  appeared  unto  the  rest  of  th& 


TIFE  EXCELLENCY  OP  PAITH.  i347 

upostles;  he  refused,  therefore,  to  believe,  on  their 
tes^timony,  that  Christ  had  risen,  and  required  the 
evidence  of  his  senses.  "  Except,"  s  lys  he,  "  I 
shall  see  in  his  hatsds  the  print  of  the  nails,  and 
thrust  my  hand  into  his  side,  i  wiM  not  believe.'* 
Jesus  afterwards  appeared  unto  the  apostles  when 
Thomas  was  present,  and  called  to  him:  "  Reach 
blither  thy  finger,  and  behold  my  hands;  and  reach 
hither  thy  hand,  and  thrust  it  into  my  side  ;  and 
be  not  faithless,  but  believing."  Convinced  by  this 
irresistible  evidence,  Thomas  exclaimed,  in  the 
ecstacy  of  adoration,  "  My  Lord  and  my  God." 

Thomas  was  convinced  of  the  resurrection  of 
iiis  Mas-ter  on  the  evidence  of  sense.  But  belief 
founded  on  the  evidence  of  testimony,  on  the  state- 
ments of  credible  witnesses,  is  a  law  of  our  na- 
ture. To  reject  as  fn\:>e,  every  thing  whicli  we  do 
not  know  from  the  evidence  of  our  senses  to  be 
true,  would  so  fir  abridge  human  knowledge,  and 
ditninish  human  activity,  that  the  business  of  life 
would  be  arrested,  and  the  'human  mind,  now  so 
com[)lex  and  powerful  in  its  operations,  and  ex- 
tensive in  its  range,  would  sink  into  the  mere  in- 
stinct that  guides  the  brutes  to  the  preservation  of 
animal  existence.  Confirlence  in  the  testimony  of 
those  who  could  not  be  deceived,  who  had  no  mo- 
live  to  deceive,  or  who  are  too  honest  to  deceive, 
even  if  interest  urged  them  to  the  attempt,  is  one 
of  those  laws  incorporated  with. our  nature  by  its 
Almighty  Maker,  on  wliich  all  men  act,  which  is 
essential  in  the  daily  intercourse  of  life,  in  the  im- 
provement of  their  minds,  and  in  the  enlargement 
of  their  knowledge  ;  and  without  the  ••  gency  of 
whi(d),  the  beneficial  and  exalted  operat  ons  of  civil 
society  xotikl  not  proceed  in  guarding,  strength- 


348  THE  EXCELLENCY  OP  FAITH. 

ening,  and  completing  the  happiness  and  prospe- 
rity of  the  human  race. 

The  testim(»ny,  therefore,  of  the  disciples,  his 
companions,  who  had  seen  the  Lord,  ought  to  have 
satisfied  the  incredulous  Thomas  ;  and  for  his  un- 
belief he  was  therefore  gently  reproved  by  our 
blessed  Lord :  "  Thomas,  because  thou  hast  seen 
me,  thou  hast  believed:"  adding,  in  commendation 
of  that  faith  which  is  founded,  not  on  the  evidence 
of  sense,  but  of  testimony  :  "  blessed  are  they  that 
have  not  seen,  and  yet  have  believed." 

Brethren,  in  this  declaration  of  our  blessed  Lord 
we  are  deeply  concerned.  We  do  not  possess  the 
evidence  of  our  Lord's  resurrection,  and  of  the 
divinity  of  his  mission,  which  the  apostles  enjoyed: 
they  repeatedly  saw  and  conversed  with  that  same 
Jesus  whom  they  had  beheld  crucified  and  com- 
mitted to  the  tomb.  On  the  evidence  of  their 
senses,  therefore,  they  were  satisfied  that  Jesus 
had  risen  from  the  dead,  and  they  adored  him  as 
their  Lord  and  their  God.  The  truth  of  his  resur- 
rection, of  the  consequent  divinity  of  his  mission, 
and  of  the  doctrines  which  by  him,  or  by  his  autho- 
rity, were  promulgated,  we  receive  on  the  testi- 
mony of  the  apostles.  We  therefore  are  of  the 
number  of  those  who  have  not  seen,  and  yet  have 
believed :  and  if  our  faith  be  sincere  and  holy  in 
its  operations  on  our  hearts  and  lives,  we  shall 
be  entitled  to  that  commendation  of  our  Lord : 
"  Blessed  are  they  who  have  not  seen,  and  yet  have 
believed." 

The  text,  therefore,  leads  us  to  consider  the 
excellence  oi  faith,  and  the  blessedness  of  it. 

The  excellence  of  faith  consists — 


THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH.  349 

I.  In  its  rational  character,  as  the  assent  of  the 
understanding  founded  on  sufficient  evidence; 

II.  In  the  exalted  dispositions  which  are  con- 
nected with  it ; 

III.  In  the  moral  effects  which  it  produces  ; 

IV.  And  in  its  divine  origin^  as  excited  and 
called  into  exercise  by  the  agency  of  the  Holy 
Spirit  of  God. 

I.  The  excellence  of  faith  consists  in  its  rational 
character,  as  the  assent  of  the  understanding  on 
sufficient  evidence. 

The  object  of  Christian  faith  is  the  revelation 
which  God  has  made  of  his  will  by  Jesus  Christ.  In 
order  to  command  the  assent  of  the  understanding 
to  the  truth  of  this  revelation,  it  must  appear  that 
a  revelation  is  possible,  that  it  was  necessary,  that 
this  revelation  has  been  made. 

Revelation  is  possible.  The  Being  who  made 
and  who  rules  all  things,  is  the  infinite  source  of 
truth  and  of  wisdom ;  and  therefore  he  can  devise 
that  system  which  will  convey  moral  truth  and 
wisdom  to  his  intelligent  creatures ;  and  almighty 
and  irresistable  in  power,  he  can  make  known  to 
them  his  will.  And  it  was  necessary  and  expe- 
dient that  the  Governor  of  the  universe  should 
proclaim  to  man,  by  a  special  revelation,  a  system 
of  religious  truth  and  duty.  For  human  reason 
had  proved  an  incompetent  guide  in  those  interest- 
ing subjects  connected  with  the  spiritual  and  im- 
mortal interests  of  man.  On  points  in  which  it 
was  essential  that  he  should  arrive  at  certainty, 
reason  could  only  offer  conjecture  and  hope. 
Prompted  by  the  general  view  of  God's  mercy,  she 
might  indulge  the  hope  that  he  would  extend  par- 


^56  THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH, 

don  to  the  penitent  sinner;  but  no  effort  of  reason 
could  determine  the  mode  in  which  the  Ruler  of 
t-lie  world,  consistently  with  his  holiness  and  jus- 
tice, could  exercise  the  attribute  of  mercy.  Thi-s 
holiness  and  justice,  violated  by  man's  sin,  seem«d 
to  require  a  propitiation  ;  but  where  was  this  pro- 
pitiation to  be  found  I  Of  what  avail  was  the  sa- 
crifice of  thousands  of  rams  1  to  what  purpose 
flowed  rivers  of  oiH  worse  than  in  vain,  the  offer- 
ing of  the  fruit  of  the  body  for  the  sin  of  the  soul. 
On  the  subject  of  human  guilt  it  still  remained  a 
painful  mystery,  "  how  God,  just  as  well  as  mer- 
ciful, could  be  just,  and  yet  justify  the  sinner." 
The  light  which  human  reason  shed  on  the  attri- 
butes and  will  of  the  Maker  of  the  universe,  and 
on  the  obligations  and  rules  of  virtue,  was  obscured 
hy  the  prejudices  and  passions  of  a  corrupt  heart 
and  imagination.  On  the  scenes  of  man's  future 
existence  th^re  rested  clouds  which  reason  could 
not  dispel.  A  revelation,  therefore,  that  should 
cast  certainty  on  these  infinitely  interesting  topics, 
was  the  most  invaluable  gift  that  man  could  receive 
from  his  Maker. 

But  what  was  to  be  the  evidence  of  the  divine 
origin  of  this  revelation  l  Having  respect  to  the 
divine  nature  and  counsels,  it  must  necessarily 
contain  doctrines  transcending  the  com  prehension 
of  human  reason.  Its  internal  excellence,  thcre-" 
fore,  could  not  be  a  complete  evidence  of  its  divine 
origin.  This  must  be  established  by  those  mira- 
culous works  which  divine  power  alone  could  effect. 
These  miraculous  works  were  performed  in  ai tes- 
tation of  the  life,  the  death,  and  the  resurrection 
of  Jesus  Christ.  For  all  these  events  we  have  the 
testimony  of  eye-witnesses,  sealed  by  their  blood. 


THE  EXCELLENCY  OP  FAITIJ^.  351 

confirmed  also  by  their  own  miracles,  and  banded 
down  in  records  scrupulously  scrutinized  and  guard- 
ed from  age  to  age.  The  apostles  testified  to  facts 
with  which  they  were  intimately  acquainted.  No 
delusion  of  the  imagination  could  have  made  them 
believe  that  their  Master,  who  was  crucified,  was 
risen  a^ain  :  no  sinister  motive  of  interest  or  am- 
bition  could  have  supported  them  under  the  un- 
paralleled suflTorings  which  they  sustained  in  at- 
testation of  this  fact :  no  power,  but  the  power 
of  the  Most  Higb,  could  have  enabled  them,  in  a 
short  period,  to  subvert  the  Jewish  temple  and  the 
Pugan  altar,  and  on  their  ruins  to  erect  the  cross  of 
a  despised  Nazarene.  The  Gospel  of  Christ  was 
to  tiie  Jews  a  stumbling-block,  and  to  the  Greeks 
foolishness;  and  yet  a  few  illiterate  fishermen  con- 
verted to  the  belief  of  this  contemned  Gospel  my- 
riads of  Jews  and  Greeks.  The  Jews  forsook  their 
temple  and  flocked  to  the  standard  of  him  whom 
their  fathers  slew.  The  schools,  long  the  boast 
of  the  Gentile  philosophers,  were  deserted:  human 
wisdom  and  liuman  passions  rendered  homage  to 
the  cross.  By  what  power  was  this  wonderful 
conversion  of  the  world  effected  l  Surely  only  by 
the  power  of  God.  "  Jesus  Christ  was  a  man  ap- 
proved of  God  among  them  by  miracles,  and  won- 
ders, and  signs,  which  God  wrought  in  the  midst 
of  them,  as  they  themselves  also  knew."  Christian, 
faith  stands  not  in  tiie  wiisdoni  of  man,  but  in  the 
power  of  God. 

The  intrinsic  excellence  of  the  Gospel,  in  its 
provision  for  all  our  spiritual  necessities,  is  calcu- 
lated to  confirm  our  faith  in  it.  For  our  release 
fiom  the  guilt  of  sin  it  provides  a  Saviour,  who,  as 
the  J^on  of  God,  is  mighty  to  save ;  anil  yet,  bearing 


352  THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH. 

our  sins  and  carrying  our  sorrows,  is  touched  with 
a  feeling  for  our  infirmities.  For  our  deliverance 
from  the  dominion  of  sin,  it  aftords  the  most  ample 
means  in  those  precepts  which  enlighten  and  direct 
us,  and  in  that  Holy  Spirit  which  sanctifies  and 
governs  us.  It  displays,  as  our  Deliverer  from  the 
grave,  and  our  Guide  to  the  mansions  of  immorta- 
tality.  Him  who  has  vanquished  death,  and  opened 
the  kingdom  of  heaven  to  all  believers.  The  Gos- 
pel is  the  power  of  God  unto  salvation.  Our  faith 
in  it  is  then  a  rational  assent  to  its  truths  ;  for  this 
faith  is  founded  on  the  highest  moral  evidence- 
human,  confirmed  by  divine  testimony — and  the 
intrinsic  excellence  of  the  system  thus  externally 
established. 

n.  The  excellence  of  Christian  faith  further 
consists  in  the  exalted  dispositions  which  are  con- 
nected with  the  exercise  of  it. 

As  an  assent  to  revealed  truth  on  sufficient  evi- 
dence, faith,  in  its  most  strict  signification,  is  an 
act  of  the  understanding ;  but  when  sincere  and 
genuine,  it  implies,  and  calls  into  exercise,  the 
most  exalted  virtues  of  the  heart. 

1.  It  implies  an  humble  desire  to  know  and  to 
do  the  will  of  God. 

A  proud  confidence  in  the  power  of  human  rea- 
son, and  a  disposition  to  reject  every  fact  or  doo^ 
trine,  however  attested  or  excellent,  w'  ■  *  i- 
scends  its  comprehension,  is  not  Justin-  Me 

frail  and  dependent  character  of  man;  an»i  .  st 

hostile  both  to  the  discovery  and  to  the  r«4j;cpi  jq 
of  truth.  Opposed  to  this  arrognnt  spirit,  is  that 
humility  which  is  a  principal  constituent  of  i'lMth  ; 
a  profound  sense  of  his  weakness  and  dependence. 


THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH.  35S 

and  an  unreserved  acknowledgment  of  the  claims 
of  his  Maker  and  Judge  to  his  homage  and  obedi-- 
ence;  an  earnest  desire  to  know  and  to  do  the  will 
of  him  whose  will  constitutes  the  happiness  and 
perfection  of  all  intelligent  creation — these  are  the 
exercises  of  that  intellectual  humility  which  is  an 
essential  constituent  of  Christian  faith,  and  which 
is  so  suitable  to  the  character  of  man,  as  a  creature 
dependent,  in  all  his  powers,  in  all  his  acts,  in  all 
his  principles  and  hopes,  on  the  Being  who  made 
him,  and  which  enhance  the  excellence  of  that 
Christian  faith  of  which  they  are  principal  consti- 
tuents. 

2.  Faith  also  calls  us  to  exercise  another  moral 
virtue — trust. 

Under  a  sense  of  his  weakness  and  guilt,  man  is 
prompted  to  rely  on  the  wisdom,  the  power,  and 
the  mercy  of  his  Maker,  his  Redeemer,  and  his 
Judge.  In  this  trust  consists  the  practical  exercise 
and  the  consoling  efficacy  of  faith.  The  Christian, 
in  the  exercise  of  faith,  beholding  the  Saviour  re- 
vealed in  the  Gospel,  Jesus  Christ  the  Son  of  God 
making  atonement  through  his  blood,  and  by  his 
obedience  and  sufferings  vindicating  the  justice 
and  holiness  of  God,  and  relying  on  the  merits  of 
this  Saviour  for  pardon  and  acceptance,  enjoys  the 
peace  of  a  conscience  reconciled  to  God.  In  the 
exercise  of  faith,  the  Christian  confides  in  the  di- 
vine strength  which  the  Saviour  offers  him,  dili- 
gently applies  it,  and  enjoys  the  assurance  of 
release  from  unholy  passions,  and  of  succour  under 
all  temptations.  In  the  exercise  of  faith,  the  Chris- 
tian relies  on  the  compassion  of  that  gracious  Sa- 
viour who  is  touched  with  a  feeling  for  his  infirmi- 
ties, and  he  is  no  longer  depressed  or  intimidated 

Vol.  III.  45 


354  THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH. 

bv  the  evils  of  the  world  In  the  exercise  of  faithj 
the  Christian  relies  on  that  Redeemer  who  rose 
froni  the  a^rave  and'  ascended  to  heaven,  and  is  in- 
vested with  almighty  power,  assuring  victory  to  his 
followers;  and  he  triumph*  in  the  hope  that  he 
shall  be  conductted  through  the  grave  and  gate  of 
dfMth  to  a  joyful  resurrection.  In  this  reliance, 
then,  the  Christian  finds  fulness  of  consolation  un- 
d<^r  all  the  weaknesses,  the  sorrows,  and  the  sins 
of  our  corrupt  and  mortal  nature.  How  exnlted 
and  valuable  is  th  tt  faith  which  lead*  to  this  con- 
sol  itory  and  exalted  reliance  ! 

3.  Faith  also  implies  the  exercise  of  love  in  its 
pun  St  fervours  and  on  the  highest  objects. 

Love,  occupying  all  the  powers  of  the  mind  and 
the  affections  of  the  heart,  to  that  God  who  so 
lovrd  the  world  as  to  give  his  only-begotten  Son, 
tliat  whosoever  believeth  in  him  should  not  perish, 
but  shf  iild  have  everlasting  life — love  to  that  blessed 
Redeemer  who  gave  hims(  If  to  siifffMing  and  death 
for  our  salvation,  who  still  liveth  to  make  interces- 
sion for  us,  to  guide  and  to  succour  us,  and  who  is 
preparing  for  us  mansions  of  rest  and  glory  in  his 
Father's  house.  Love  exercised  on  objects  thus 
exidted,  purifies  and  elevates  the  soul,  and  en- 
hances the  excellence  of  that  faith  which  calls  it 
forth. 

Ill  But  the  excellence  of  Christian  faith  will 
also  appear  from  the  moi'al  effects  which  it  pro- 
duces. 

What  is  it  which  brings  down  the  high  imagina- 
tioi  s  of  man,  which  prostrates  his  elev  sted  ideas 
of  nis  own  virtue  and  strength,  and  leads  him,  as 
a  redeemed  sinner,   to   receive   suivatiun   at  tha 


THE  EXCELLENCY  OP  FATTH.  355 

foot  of  the  cross] — Tiiat  fnith  which  believes  th^t 
Jesus  is  the  8on  of  God;  that  this  Saviour,  r<')e-  ted 
of  men,  "  is  the  brightness  of  the  Feather's  glo'-y," 
"  God  over  all,"  "  mii^hty  to  save." 

What  is  it  vvhieh  subduns  the  corrti!)t  prop  -nsi- 
ties  of  the  heart,  .uid  places  God  in  the  soul  as  its 
rightful  Sovereign,  and  enlists  all  its  alf(3ctions  ia 
his  service! — That  faith  "  which  worketh  by  love." 

What  is  it  which  quells  passion,  tames  inoj  dinate 
desire,  effects  what  no  human  laws  can  effect,  dis- 
arms revenge,  and  from  being  proud,  sensual,  cor- 
rupt, the;  slave  of  sin  and  Satan,  makes  man  hum- 
ble, holy,  undefiled,  the  child  of  God! — That  "  faith 
v/hifh  purifieth  the  heart." 

What  is  it  which  has  inspired  the  Christian, 
when  they  would  seduce  or  intimidate  hitn  from 
the  service  of  his  God,  to  despise  the  blandish- 
ments of  pleasure,  the  threats  of  power,  the  terrors 
of  persecution — what  is  it  which  has  quenched  the 
fires  of  the  stake,  and  calmed  the  agonies  of  the 
rack  1 — That  faith  which  "  overcometh  the  world." 

Yes — What  is  it  which  gains  a  victory  infinitely 
greater  than  those  which  have  obtained  glory  for 
thf  conquerors  of  nations,  victory  over  the  w«jrld, 
its  sins,  its  temptations,  its  pleasures,  its  sorrows'? 
What  is  it  which  enables  the  Christian,  when  sur- 
rounded by  every  enjoyment  alluring  to  the  imagi- 
nation and  gratif^ying  to  the  passions,  to  remember 
that  he  is  tlie  citizen  of  a  better  country ;  which 
excites  him,  when  distress,  poverty,  and  tribulation 
encompass  him,  to  rejoice,  knowing  that  they  are 
working  out  for  him  an  eternal  weight  of  glory  ? 
What  is  it  which  even  brightens  the  valley  of  the 
shadow  of  death,  and  lea<ls  the  Ch^slian  trium- 
phantly through  this  dread  region,  looking  forward 


356  THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH. 

to  the  glory  which  awaits  him  in  the  celestial  realms 
beyond  it  1 — That  faith  which  is  "  the  substance  of 
things  hoped  for,  the  evidence  of  things  not  seen." 

In  the  words  of  an  eloquent  Christian  Father, 
eulogizing  the  triumphs  of  foith — "  Give  me  a  man 
who  is  wrathful,  reproachful,  ungovernable,  and 
with  a  few  words  of  God  I  will  render  him  as  pla- 
cid as  a  lamb.  Give  me  a  man  covetous  and  nig- 
gardly, and  an  avaricious  man,  and  I  will  return 
him  to  thee  liberal,  and  distributing  his  money 
with  a  bountiful  hand.  Give  me  one  that  is  timor- 
ous of  grief  and  death ;  he  shall  despise  all  manner 
of  torment.  Give  me  one  that  is  lustful,  adulterous, 
and  intemperate ;  you  shall  presently  see  him  so- 
ber, chaste,  and  continent.  Give  me  one  that  is 
cruel  and  thirsty  of  blood  ;  his  fury  shall  be  imme- 
diately converted  to  piety  and  clemency.  Give  me 
one  that  is  unjust,  foolish,  and  criminal ;  and  he 
shall  presently  be  rendered  just,  prudent,  and  in- 
nocent." 

These  are  the  triumphs  of  Christian  faith — tri- 
umphs which  natural  religion  never  knew,  which 
unassisted  reason  never  could  attain. 

IV.  For  it  is  of  importance  that  we  should  re- 
member that  true  saving  faith  is  rendered  an  oper- 
ating principle  by  divine  power — by  the  Holy  Spirit 
of  God. 

Not  only  do  the  sacred  writings  ascribe  all  those 
miraculous  powers  which  are  the  foundation  of 
Christian  faith  to  the  agency  of  the  Holy  Spirit, 
but  they  represent  the  same  Holy  Spirit  as  open- 
ing the  eyes  of  the  understanding  to  discern,  and 
the  heart  to  receive,  the  wondrous  things  of  God's 
law,  the  great  mysteries  of  redemption.  The  agency 


THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH.  357 

of  the  Holy  Spirit  on  onr  minds  and  hearts  is  in- 
comprehensible ;  but  it  is  not,  therefore,  less  a 
reality.  The  wind  bloweth  where  it  listeth,  and 
we  hear  the  sound  thereof,  but  cannot  tell  whence 
it  Cometh,  nor  whither  it  goeth.  So  are  the  opera- 
tions of  the  Spirit.  In  its  influence  on  the  under- 
standing and  the  heart,  the  Holy  Spirit  is  not  over- 
powering;  for  then  it  would  destroy  man's  free 
agency,  and  subvert  faith  as  a  moral  virtue.  Its 
agency  is  moral  and  persuasive,  aiding  the  opera- 
tions of  the  understanding  and  the  heart  in  dis- 
cerning and  receiving  the  great  truths  of  redemp- 
tion. The  excellence  then  of  your  faith.  Christians, 
is  completed,  by  its  being  excited,  cherished, 
strengthened,  defended,  and  made  the  principle  of 
active  obedience  by  the  co-operating  power  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  of  God.  The  influences  of  the  Holy 
Spirit,  conveyed  to  all  men  so  far  as  is  necessary 
to  enable  them  to  know  and  to  do  the  will  of  their 
Maker,  are  secured  to  Christians  by  the  instru- 
mentality of  the  ministrations,  sacraments,  and  or- 
dinances of  the  church  to  which  they  must  be  united. 
For,  my  brethren,  it  is  of  importance  that  we  should 
consider  that  the  faith  by  which  we  are  saved  must 
be  exercised  in  union  with  the  church,  the  mystical 
body  of  Christ.  Our  Lord  himself  declares — "  He 
that  believeth  and  is  baptized,  shall  be  saved."  By 
baptism  we  must  be  admitted  into  the  church;  and 
thus  united,  in  the  exercise  of  faith,  to  Christ,  its 
divine  head,  must  derive  from  him  spiritual  nou- 
rishment, consolation,  and  strength,  and  with  this 
his  mystical  body  finally  be  exalted  to  that  tri- 
umphant state  on  which  our  divine  Head  hath 
already  entered.  How  fallacious,  then,  the  opinion 
that  faith  alone,  independently  of  our  union  with 


358  THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH. 

the  ehurch,  by  the  participation  of  it?  sacramfints 
and  ordinances  from  its  authorized  ministry,  will  be 
effectual  to  our  salvation !  "  He  that  believeth  and 
is  baptized,"  said  our  blessed  Lord,  "  shall  be 
saved  ;"  and  the  language  of  his  apostles  uniformly 
proclaims,  that  through  his  body  the  church  we 
are  iniited  to  him,  and  in  holy  communion  with 
this  :>itdy  shall  fiially  enjoy  the  triumphs  and  glo- 
ries of  its  divine  Head, 

The  faith,  thtui,  by  which  we  are  saved,  brethren, 
is  such  an  assent  of  the  understanding  to  the  facts 
and  trii'hs  of  the  Gospel  as,  through  the  influences 
of  the  Divine  Spirit,  calls  forth  the  exercise  of  holy 
affi'ctions,  and  produces  holy  submission  to  the 
ordinances  and  com»nandments  of  God, 

Tiiey  whose  faith  thus  worketh  by  love,  and 
brinsfs  forth  the  fruits  of  holiness,  have  assured  to 
th(^m  tiie  pardon  of  their  sins,  (through  the  merits 
of  that  S  iviour  in  whom  they  trust,)  and  the  enjoy- 
m«^nt  of  the  favour  of  God  ;  for,  "justified  by  faith," 
they  have  peace  with  God  through  our  Lord  Jesus 
Christ.  They  are  enriched  with  the  gifts  and 
graces  of  the  Holy  Spirit ;  for,  in  the  language  of 
the  apostle,  Christ  by  his  Spirit  dwells  in  their 
hearts,  eiirichiniz  them  with  divine  wisdom  and 
knowledge,  purifying  and  sanctifying  their  souls, 
and  leading  them  in  the  ways  of  God's  law,  and  in 
the  works  of  his  commandments.  They  obtain 
succour  under  temptation,  so  that  theirs  is  the  vic- 
tory which  overcometh  the  world — even  their  faith. 
They  enjoy  comfort  under  sorrow;  for,  amidst  all 
the  changes  and  chaiu-.es  of  this  mortal  life,  their 
hearts  are  fixed  on  that  Saviour  whom,  not  having 
seen,  they  love  ;  th<'y  rejoice  in  the  unfailing  as- 
surances of  their  divme  Lord — "  None  shall  hurt 


THK  EXeEfJ.ENCY  OF  FAITH.  ^59 

yon,  or  make  you  afraid.  All  thincfs  shall  work 
together  for  your  g-ood  "  And  lastly,  they  who 
partake  of  true  Christian  faith  are  assured  of  vic- 
tory over  death,  and  everlasting  life.  "  He  that 
believeth  in  me,"  said  Jesus,  who  is  the  resurrec- 
tion and  the  life,  "shall  never  die;"  and  in  firm 
reliance  on  this  gracious  assurance,  it  ra  ly  l:>e  the 
triumphant  r'^joicinjr  of  every  true  heliever,  in  his 
last  tremendous  conflict,  when  nature,  and  all  that 
nature  can  supply,  fails  him  for  ever — •'  O  death, 
where  is  thy  stinj;  1  O  grave,  where  is  thy  victory  1" 
"  Henceforth  there  is  laid  U[)  for  me  a  crown  of 
glory."  Blessed  are  they  who  are  not  seized,  and 
yet  have  believed. 

But  what  is  the  awful  denunciation  against  unbe- 
lief? "He  that  believeth  not,"  said  Christ  himself, 
"shall  be  damned" — "  shall  be  punished  with  ever- 
lasting destruction  from  the  presence  of  God,  and 
from  the  glory  of  his  power."  Just  sentence;  for 
he  wilfully  rejects  the  counsel  of  God  for  his  sal- 
vation. 

Professing  Christians,  let  me  beseech  you  to  re- 
member that  this  condemnation  awaits  not  only 
those  who  reject  Jesus  Christ  as  their  Saviour,  bat 
those  who  hold  the  faith  in  unrighteousness,  those 
whose  faith,  noi  bringing  forth  good  works,  is  dead. 
Examine  then  yourselves,  whether  you  have  that 
faith  which  workeih  by  love,  which  purifieth  the 
heart,  which  overcometh  the  temptations  of  a  sinful 
world,  and  which  leads  you  to  observe  and  keep 
the  ordinances  and  commandments  of  God. 

If  you  are  Christians  in  deed  and  in  truth,  as 
well  as  in  name  and  profession,  be  it  your  object 
to  increase  in  that  faith  which  is  the  source  of  all 
your  virtues,  and  all  your  spiritual  consolations  and 


360  THE  EXCELLENCY  OF  FAITH. 

joys.  Be  it  your  increasing  prayer  and  endeavour 
that  your  faith  may  abound  more  and  more  in  all  its 
holy  fruits — love,  joy,  peace,  long-suffering,  gentle- 
ness, goodness,  meekness,  temperance.  Let  your 
faith,  vigorous  and  lively,  ascending  to  that  heaven 
where  your  Saviour  Christ  hath  gone  before,  raise 
you  above  the  world — not  above  its  duties,  not 
above  its  pure  enjoyments,  the  gifts  of  a  gracious 
Providence — but  above  its  sins,  above  an  inordinate 
love  of  even  its  lawful  pursuits  and  pleasures,  above 
its  temptations  and  its  sorrows.  Let  your  faith  be 
the  substance  of  things  hoped  for,  and  you  shall 
enjoy  on  earth  a  foretaste  of  those  glories  prepared 
for  you  in  your  heavenly  home.  Let  your  faith  be 
the  evidence  of  things  not  seen,  and  you  shall  re- 
joice in  that  Saviour  whom  you  see  by  the  eye  of 
faith,  with  joy  unspeakable  and  full  of  glory. 

Especially  let  this  faith,  thus  purifying,  enno- 
bling, and  consolatory,  be  in  lively  exercise  when 
you  approach  the  table  of  your  Lord.  There  are 
exhibited  the  agony  and  bloody  sweat,  the  cross 
and  passion  of  him  who  died  for  you,  and  dying, 
redeemed  you  ;  and  there  are  pledged  to  you  the 
merits  of  him  who  rose  again,  and  ever  liveth  to 
intercede  for  you.  Realize,  then,  the  infinite  com- 
passion and  the  mighty  power  of  your  Redeemer, 
the  Lord  of  hosts ;  and  when  you  receive  the 
pledges  of  his  grace  and  mercy,  you  may  rejoice 
in  the  assurance  that  you  are  heirs,  through  hope, 
of  his  everlasting  kingdom. 


SERMON   XXX. 


"THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS   OF  JESUS,   DURING   THE  PERIOD 
BETWEEN  HIS  RESURRECTION  AND  ASCENSION. 


Luke  xxiv.  36. 
Jesus  himself  stood  in  the  midst  of  thenl. 

Wk  have  recently  been  engaged,  my  brethren, 
in  celebrating  those  remarkable  periods  in  the 
history  of  our  Lord,  when  he  suffered  for  our  sins, 
when  he  was  subjected  to  the  dominion  of  the 
grave,  and  when  he  'ose  from  the  dead.  The 
church,  following  successively  the  events  of  his 
history,  now  marks  in  her  services  that. portion  of 
it  which  intervened  between  his  resurrection  and 
his  ascension.  After  our  blessed  Lord,  in  the  ful- 
filment of  prophecy,  and  in  the  performance  of 
those  stupendous  acts  by  which  our  redemption 
was  achieved,  had  obtained  victory  over  death,  and 
established  his  pretensions  as  the  Son  of  God,  a 
considerable  period  elapsed  before  he  left  the 
world,  never  to  return  to  it  but  as  its  Judge,  and 
ascending  to  the  celestial  courts,  took  possession 
of  the  glory  which  he  had  with  the  Father  before 
the  world  was. 

Having  thus  contemplated  Christ  as  a  Saviour 
Buffering  and  dying  on  the  cross,  and  in  his  power 
rising  from  the  tomb,  let  me  now  direct  your  at- 
tention to  him  during  that  period  which  is  subse- 
quent to  his  resurrection,  and  prior  to  his  ascension 
to  heaven. 

Vol.  in.  46 


362  THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUrf. 

1.  What  was  the  corporeal  nature  of  our  Lord 
during  that  period  l 

2.  What  was  his  general  occupation'!  and, 

0.  What  were  his  most  remarkable  acts? 
Tliese  are  tiie  inquiries  on  which  I  shall  now 

submit  to  you  a  few  remarks. 

1.  What  was  the  corporeal  nature  of  our  Lord 
during  the  period  which  elapsed  between  his  resur- 
rection and  his  ascension  to  heaven  ? 

This  inquiry  would  seem  unnecessary  and  ex- 
traordinary, if  it  were  not  the  fact  that  our  Saviour's 
corporeal  nature,  as  it  now^  subsists  in  his  state  of 
triumph  and  glory  in  heaven,  is  very  different  from 
its  condition  during  liis  state  of  humiliation  on 
earth.  In  this  latter,  mortal,  frail,  subject  to  the 
wants  and  the  sufferings  of  humanity — in  the  for- 
mer, immortal,  impassible,  perfect,  invested  with 
celestial  splendour.  It  has  therefore  been  made 
an  inquiry — Of  the  properties  of  which  of  these 
conditions  did  the  body  of  Christ  partake  during 
the  period  between  his  resurrection  and  ascension  I 
Was  his  body,  after  he  rose  from  the  grave,  in  all 
respects  the  same  body  that  suffered  the  wants  and 
sorrows  of  humanity,  and  expired  on  the  cross?  or 
was  it  that  glorilied  body  in  which  the  Redeemer  is 
now  seated  on  the  throne  of  universal  dominion? 

The  opinion  has  been  advanced,  that,  after  his 
resurrection,  the  Saviour  having  thrown  aside  the 
habiliments  of  mortality,  had  assumed  that  immor- 
tal body  in  whicii  lie  shall  reign  for  ever  at  the 
right  hand  of  his  F\ilher.  This  opinion  has  been 
advanced  and  maintained  with  great  force  and  in- 
genuity by  the  distinguished  Bishop  Horsley,  who, 
in  addition  to  unrivalled  erudition  and  exalted  ta- 


THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS.  363 

lents,  exhibited  llie  rare  union  of  the  most  bold 
originality  in  theological  investigation  with  the 
most  humble  submission  of  his  vigorous  under- 
standing and  lofty  ftincy  to  the  prescriptions  of  re- 
vealed truth.  lie  supposes  that  a  complete  change 
was  effected  in  our  Lord's  person  after  his  resur- 
rection ;  that  his  body — whicii,  before  this  event, 
was  "  the  mortal  body  of  a  man,  suffering  from 
f^itifjue  and  external  violence,  and  needinsf  tlio  re- 
fection  of  food,  of  rest,  and  sleep,  was  confined 
by  its  gravity  to  the  earth's  surfcice,  and  was  trans- 
lated from  one  place  to  another  by  successive  mo- 
tion through  the  intermediate  space — became,  after 
his  resurrection,  the  body  of  a  man  raised  to  life 
and  immortality,  and  mysteriously  united  to  divi- 
nity ; — no  longer,  as  when  invested  with  a  mortal 
body,  requiring  food  for  subsistence,  and  lodging 
for  shelter  and  repose.  On  earth  he  had  no  longer 
any  local  residence  :  he  was  become  the  inhabitant 
of  another  region,  from  which  he  came  occasionally 
to  converse  with  his  disciples." 

The  objection  to  this  theory  (if  it  may  be  allowed 
to  me  to  object  to  a  theory  advanced  by  so  high 
an  authority)  is,  that  on  the  supposition  that  the 
body  of  Christ,  after  his  resurrection,  had  under- 
gone this  change  from  mortal  to  immortal,  from 
the  body  of  suffering  and  humiliation  to  the  body 
of  triumph  and  glory,  we  should  expect  that  this 
immortal  body  would  have  exhibited  a  portion  at 
least  of  that  splendour  with  which  we  are  taught 
to  believe  that  it  shines  forth  in  its  celestial  state. 
The  transfiguration  of  Christ,  when  his  face  did 
shine  as  the  sun,  and  his  raimept  was  white  as  the 
light,  is  considered  an  emblem  of  that  blaze  of 
splendour  which  unceasingly  surrounds  the  glori- 


364  THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS. 

fi'(l  body  of  the  Redeemer ;  and  if  he  assumed 
tluit  body  after  his  resurrection,  and  if  his  habita- 
tion was  in  the  glory  of  the  highest  heavens,  why, 
whi'U  he  descended  to  his  interviews  with  his  dis- 
cif)les,  did  he  not  bring  with  him  some  of  the 
splendour  of  the  courts  which  he  had  left?  For 
aught  that  appears  from  his  iiistory,  his  appear- 
ance was  the  same  as  before  his  resurrection.  And 
what  still  more  weakens  this  theory,  there  is  not 
the  least  intimation  that  the  disciples  regarded 
their  Lord  but  as  invested  with  a  body  partaking 
of  all  its  former  qualities.  On  various  occasions 
he  sat  at  meat  with  them,  and  on  one  occasion  he 
did  eat  before  them. 

The  evangelists  and  apostles,  in  their  writings, 
assign  the  glorification  of  Christ,  his  assumption 
of  a  glorified  and  immortal  body,  not  to  the  time 
of  his  resurrection,  but  to  the  period  when  he 
ascended  to  heaven,  and  for  ever  sat  down  on  the 
right  hand  of  the  Majesty  on  high. 

But  this  conjecture  involves  and  affects  no  es- 
sential article  of  faith.  The  only  fact  on  this  sub- 
ject of  real  importance  is,  that  whatever  was  the 
body  of  the  Saviour,  whether  of  glory  or  humilia- 
tion, it  was  the  body  which  enabled  the  disciples 
to  identify  their  Lord.  Satisfied,  after  his  resur- 
rection, by  repeated  interviews,  and  by  personal 
converse  with  him,  of  the  identity  of  his  person, 
they  were  thus  qualified  to  bear  testimony  to  the 
fact  of  his  resurrection  from  the  dead. 

We  are  now  prepared  for  the  second  inquiry. 

2.  What  were  the  general  occupations  of  our 
Lord,  in  the  interval  between  his  resurrection  and 
his  ascension? 


THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS.        365 

They  still  had  reference  to  that  great  work  which 
had  occupied  every  moment  of  his  life,  which  was 
the  object  of  his  death,  and  of  which  his  resurrec- 
tion was  an  important  pledge — the  great  work  of 
redemption,  the  establishment  of  that  kingdom  by 
which  the  dominion  of  sin  and  Satan  was  to  be 
destroyed,  and  holiness,  and  happiness,  and  im- 
mortality dispensed  to  believers.  In  order  to  this, 
his  first  business  was  to  convince  his  disciples  of 
the  identity  of  his  person,  and  thus  to  satisfy  them 
of  the  truth  of  his  resurrection.  For  this  purpose 
he  appeared  to  the  women  who  held  him  fast  by 
the  feet  and  worshipped  him.  He  appeared  to  two 
of  the  disciples  as  they  walked  and  went  into  the 
country.  He  conversed  with  the  two  disciples  go- 
ing to  Emmaus,  and  sat  at  meat  with  them.  He 
appeared  to  the  eleven  as  they  sat  at  meat,  and 
showed  his  pierced  hands,  and  feet,  and  side.  He 
called  to  the  incredulous  Thomas — "  Reach  hither 
thy  finger,  and  behold  my  hands ;  and  reach  hither 
thy  hand,  and  thrust  it  into  my  side  ;  and  be  not 
faithless,  but  believing."  He  showed  himself  again 
to  his  disciples  at  the  sea  of  Tiberias,  and  from 
their  presence  he  was  visibly  taken  up  into  heaven. 
It  was  impossible  for  them  to  doubt  that  the  same 
Jesus,  whom  they  had  seen  crucified  and  commit- 
ted to  the  tomb,  had  risen  from  the  dead.  They 
who  knew  his  person  thoroughly,  from  his  constant 
and  intimate  intercourse  with  them,  were  the  best 
qualified  to  be  the  judges  of  its  identity  after  his 
resurrection,  and  thus  to  be  witnesses  to  the  world 
of  the  truth  of  that  event  which  is  the  foundation 
of  all  our  hopes. 

But  our  Lord,  prosecuting  the  work  of  redemp- 
tion in  order  to  the  establishment  of  his  kingdom, 


'oQ6  THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OP  JESUS. 

was  occupied  in  the  interval  between  his  death  and 
his  resurrection,  in  unfolding  to  the  disciples  the 
nature  of  thai  kingdom,  and  in  disclosing  to  them 
his  own  gracious  character  and  offices.  To  the 
two  disciples  going  to  Emmaus  we  are  told  thai 
he  "  expounded  in  all  the  Scriptures  the  things 
concerning  himself."  To  all  the  eleven  he  "  opened 
their  understanding,  that  they  might  understand 
the  Scriptures ;  showing  how  all  things  were  ful- 
filled that  were  written  in  the  law  of  Moses,  and 
in  the  prophets,  and  in  the  Psalms,  concerning 
him."  And  during  the  forty  days  in  which  he  was 
seen  of  them,  it  is  expressly  said  that  "  he  spake 
to  them  coiicerning  the  things  of  the  kingdom  of 
God."  What  an  interesting  period  to  them  !  What 
an  important  one  to  us !  Then,  my  brethren,  were 
laid  the  foundations  of  tliat  kingdom  which,  sub- 
sequently reared  by  inspired  apostles,  dispenses  to 
us  the  merits  of  the  Redeemer's  blood,  and  that 
jrrace  of  his  Holy  Spirit  by  which  we  are  sanctified, 
and  thus  prepared  for  entering  on  that  more  perfect 
state  of  the  Redeemer's  kingdom,  when,  translated 
to  heaven,  all  things  shall  be  cast  out  of  it  that 
ofi'end,  and  love,  and  peace,  and  holiness,  and  joy 
reign  in  it  for  ever. 

Jesus,  we  are  told,  spake  to  his  disciples  of  the 
things  that  were  written  by  Moses,  and  in  the  law, 
and  in  the  prophets,  and  in  the  Psalms,  concerning 
himself.  This,  we  may  reverently  suppose,  was 
the  interesting  summary  of  his  conversation  with 
them : — 

'  I  am  he,  the  Saviour  and  Deliverer,  of  whom 
Moses,  and  the  prophets,  and  the  Psalms  bare  wit- 
ness, and  to  whose  coming  patriarchs,  and  pro- 
phets, and  holy  men  looked  forward  with  holy  joy, 


THE  LTFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS.  367 

— the  promised  seed,  that  was  to  destroy  the  power 
of  the  adversary,  and  bless  the  families  of  the  earth 
with  a  spiritual  salvation — the  Shiloh,  who,  as  the 
messenger  or  sent  of  God,  was  to  gather  the  na- 
tions into  his  spiritual  fold — the  star  that,  arising 
out  of  Jacob,  was  to  be  a  light  and  deliverer  of  the 
people. 

*  I  was  offered  in  a  figure,  when  Isaac  was  laid 
on  the  altar;  and  as  in  a  figure  raised  from  the 
dead,  when  he  was  spared.  My  betrayal  by  my 
chosen  brother  and  friend  was  presignified  in  the 
sale  of  Joseph  into  bondage  by  his  brethren ;  and 
in  his  exaltation,  and  in  his  becoming  a  blessing 
to  his  brethren,  by  saving  them  alive  and  advancing 
them  to  honour,  you  behold  the  type  and  tiie  pledge 
of  my  deliverance  from  suffering  and  death,  to  visit 
you  with  blessing  and  salvation. 

*  In  the  blood  of  the  paschal  lamb,  that  saved 
the  Israelites  from  ihe  wrath  of  the  destroying 
angel,  you  behold  displayed  the  efiicacy  of  my 
blood,  as  a  lamb  without  blemish  and  without  spot, 
taking  away  the  sin  of  the  world.  A  more  perfect 
Priest  than  that  of  the  Jewish  tabernacle,  I  am  to 
enter,  not  into  the  holy  of  holies  of  the  material 
temple  with  the  blood  of  bulls  and  of  goats,  but 
into  the  true  holy  of  holies,  the  heaven  of  heavens, 
with  my  own  blood,  tiiere  to  intercede  for  the  race 
for  whom  it  was  shed. 

'  Patriarchs,  and  prophets,  and  kings  saw  my 
day,  and  were  glad  ;  David  spake  of  me,  when  he 
celebrated  the  King  that  was  to  be  set  upon  the 
holy  hill  of  Zion,  to  whom  the  heathen  were  to  be 
given  for  an  inheritance,  and  the  utmost  parts  of 
the  earth  for  a  possession  ;  and  when  he  spake  of 
the  praises  of  one  who  was  fairer  than  the  sons  of 


368  THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS. 

men,  on  whose  lips  grace  was  poured,  and  whonS 
God  had  blessed  for  ever.  I  was  that  Lord  of 
David  to  whom  the  Lord  said,  "  Sit  thuu  on  my 
right  hand,  until  I  make  thy  foes  thy  footstool  " 
And  David,  persecuted,  suffi^ring,  betrayed,  driven 
from  his  throne  and  kingdom,  and  again  restored 
to  power  and  honour,  only  prefigured  me,  the  true 
Son  of  David,  persecuted,  suffering,  betrayed,  but 
now  about  to  be  clothed  with  glory  and  honour, 
and  to  take  possession  of  a  kingdom  that  shall 
never  be  moved.  For  of  me,  the  true  David,  the 
spiritual  King  of  the  Israel  of  God,  can  it  alone  be 
said — "  Thou  wilt  not  leave  my  soul  in  hell,  nor 
wilt  thou  suffer  thy  Holy  One  to  see  corruption." 
"  Thy  throne,  O  God,  is  for  ever  and  ever ;  a 
sceptre  of  righteousness  is  the  sceptre  of  thy  king- 
dom." 

'  Of  me,  born  of  a  virgin  in  Bethlehem  Ephrata, 
Emmanuel,  Wonderful,  Counsellor,  the  mighty 
God,  the  everlasting  Father,  the  Prince  of  Peace ; 
of  me,  the  Lamb  that  was  to  be  led  to  the  slaugh- 
ter, and  the  Sheep  that  was  to  be  dumb  before  its 
shearers,  smitten,  bruised,  wounded  for  the  trans- 
gressions of  the  people,  and  cut  off  from  the  land 
of  the  living — all  the  prophets  bore  witness.  And 
in  my  resurrection  from  the  dead,  and  my  exalta- 
tion to  the  throne  of  everlasting  dominion,  I  fulfil 
the  predictions  concerning  that  mighty  King  who 
should  come,  bringing  salvation  to  the  ends  of  the 
earth,  and  saying,  with  a  voice  that  shMkes  the 
dominions  of  death  and  the  grave — "  O  death,  I 
will  be  thy  plagues ;  O  grave,  1  will  be  thy  de- 
struction." 

'  Be  not  slow  of  heart,  then,  to  believe  that  I  am 
he  of  whom  all  the  prophets  testified;  the  Messen- 


THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OP  JEStJS.  369 

«*er  of  the  covenant,  the  Desire  of  all  nations,  the 
Saviour,  the  Mighty  One  of  Jacob.  And  that  spi- 
ritual kingdom  founded  by  my  merits  and  pre- 
served by  my  grace,  I  am  now  about  to  commission 
you  to  proclaim,  and  to  establish  in  the  world.' 

3.  The  authoritif  with  which,  for  this  purpose, 
our  Lord  invested  his  disciples,  and  the  commis- 
sion he  bestowed  on  them,  were  the  2)rincipal  acts 
which  he  performed  in  tiie  interval  between  his 
resurrection  and  his  ascension — the  consideration 
of  which  was  to  constitute  the  last  head  of  this 
discourse. 

Had  it  pleased  our  Lord,  as  the  Author  and 
Finisher  of  our  faith — to  whom  was  assigned,  by 
the  Almighty  Father,  the  whole  work  of  our  salva- 
tion, he  might  not  only,  as  he  has  done,  have  in- 
spired his  apostles  to  commit  to  writing  all  the 
great  truths  of  our  redemption,  but  left  these  in- 
spired records,  under  the  guidance  of  his  Holy 
Spirit,  to  produce  their  efficacy  on  mankind,  in 
their  single  individual  capacity.  But  it  did  not  so 
please  him.  And,  without  digressing  into  a  detail 
of  the  reasons  of  a  different  constitution  of  the 
dispensation  of  grace,  it  is  my  purpose  now  only 
to  impress  on  you  the  fact,  that  our  divine  Lord 
and  Master  did  not  leave  his  followers  with  no  tie 
but  that  which  arises  from  faith  in  his  written  word. 
He  has  united  them  in  a  kingdom,  of  which  he  is 
the  Ruler,  and  collected  them  in  a  body,  of  which 
he  is  the  head;  and  they  grow  up  into  him  in  all 
things,  not  merely  by  the  efficacy,  powerful  as  it  is, 
of  his  word  enforced  by  the  Divine  Spirit,  but  by 
the  administrations  of  those  officers  of  his  kingdom 
to  whom  he  has  committed  the  mmistry  of  recoH' 

Vol.  in,  47 


370  THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS. 

ciliation,  by  the  grace  of  t!mt  hajitlsm  by  which 
they  are  admitted  into  his  body,  and  mystically 
united  to  him,  its  head;  by  the  power  of  that 
hodfj  u\v\  Mood  by  which,  in  the  holy  supper,  they 
are  nourished  and  strengthened  unto  everlasting 
life ;  and  by  the  social  prayers  and  ordinances 
whicli,  offered  and  received  in  his  name,  have  the 
promise — "  Where  two  or  three  are  gathered  to- 
gethfu*  in  my  name,  there  am  I  in  the  midst  of 
th('m." 

This  social  quaUtij  of  the  dispensation  of  grace, 
its  eminent  characteristic,  the  fc^aviour  constituted, 
when,  before  his  ascension,  he  conferred  the  me- 
morable commission  on  his  disciples — "  As  my 
Father  sent  me,  even  so  send  I  you.  Receive  ye 
the  Holy  Ghost.  Whosesoever  sins  ye  remit,  they 
are  remitted;  and  whosesoever  sins  ye  retain,  they 
are  retained.  All  power  is  given  unto  me  in  heaven 
and  on  earth.  Go  ye  therefore  and  teach  all  na- 
tions, baptizing  them  in  the  name  of  the  Father, 
and  of  the  Son,  and  of  the  Holy  Ghost.  Preach 
the  Gospel  to  every  creature.  He  that  believeth 
and  is  baptized,  shall  be  saved.  And  lo,  I  am  with 
you  alwny,  even  to  the  end  of  the  world." 

Thus  is  constituted  a  spiritual  society,  of  which, 
deriving  their  power  from  him  to  whom  all  power 
is  given  in  heaven  and  on  earth,  the  apostles,  and 
those  to  whom,  to  the  end  of  the  world,  their 
authority  should  be  transmitted,  are  recognised  as 
the  spiritual  rulers,  and  into  which  all  to  whom 
the  Gospel  should  be  preached  are  to  be  admitted 
by  baptism. 

Our  blessed  Lord,  then,  in  that  momentous  pe- 
yiod  when  he  was  occupied  with  unfolding  to  his 
disciples  the  great  mystery  of  redemption,  consti- 


THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS.  $71 

tuted  a  social  body,  a  kingdom,  a  church,  which 
was  to  be  the  channel  of  his  covenanted  mercies 
to  the  world.  It  follows  that  the  social  character 
of  his  followers,  their  union  in  his  mystical  hofl.y, 
is  a  fundamental  part  of  the  plan  of  redemption. 
The  very  first  description  of  Christians  which  wo 
have  in  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  is,  that  they 
"  continued  steadfastly  in  the  apostles'  doctrine 
and  fellowship,  and  in  breaking  of  bread,  and  in 
prayers."  Communion  witii  the  church,  by  main- 
taining fellowship  with  the  apostles,  by  breaking 
of  bread,  that  is,  partaking  of  the  Lord's  supper, 
and  by  prayers,  by  attending  the  public  worship 
authoritatively  celebrated,  is  placed  in  the  same 
rank  with  continuing  stea:dfast  in  apostolic  doc- 
trine. And  still  more  strongly  to  impress  the  funr 
damental  importance  of  communion  with  the  mys- 
tical body  of  Christ,  it  is  recorded  in  another  part 
of  the  Acts  of  the  Apostles,  that  "the  Lord  added 
to  the  church  daily  such  as  should  be  saved." 
Almost  every  page  of  the  apostolic  epistles  incul- 
cate the  doctrine,  that  Christians,  in  the  exercise 
of  faith,  are,  by  communion  with  the  church,  united 
to  him  who  is  the  head  of  the  body,  and  thus  de-^ 
rive  from  him  pardon,  grace,  and  salvation. 

Imperfect,  then,  my  brethren,  is  every  view  of 
the  Gospel  dispensation,  and  erroneous,  it  would 
seem,  every  measure  which  has  reference  to  its 
propagation,  which  does  not  recoi^nise  this  as  one 
of  its  distinguishing  features.  Where  the  church 
and  kingdom  of  God  is  to  be  found,  where  it  sub- 
sists in  its  greatest  purity,  are  inquiries  of  primary 
moment  with  every  believer  in  the  sacred  volume: 
ihey  are  inquiries  which  every  individual  availing 
himself  of  the  best  means  of  information,  must 


57^  THE  LIFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS, 

make  for  himself;  and  honestly  making  it,  he  sbnll 
not  fail,  even  though  he  may  be  in  error,  of  \.cmg 
accepted  by  that  gracious  Master,  who  is  not  strict 
to  mark  what,  through  involuntary  ignorance  or 
infirmity,  may  be  thought  or  done  amiss. 

We,  my  brethren,  think  that  the  church  to  which 
we  belong  possesses  th'-  divinely  constituted  minis- 
try, the  doctrine,  sacraments,  and  worship  of  the 
kin<i-dora  of  the  Redeemer  In  ail  our  efforts,  then, 
for  the  salvation  of  our  own  souls,  or  for  the  sal- 
vation of  the  souls  of  others,  let  us  recognise,  as  a 
fundamental  principle,  communion  icitli  the  church, 
the  continuing  steadfastly  in  the  apostles'  doctrine 
and  fellowship,  and  in  breaking  of  bread,  and  in 
prayers.  Tempering  zeal  with  humility,  firmness 
with  mildness,  and  attachment  to  our  own  prin- 
ciples with  charity  for  others,  let  us  believe  that 
we  best  discharge  onr  duty  to  our  divine  Lord,  and 
best  advance  the  interests  of  that  kingdom  which, 
before  his  ascension,  he  established,  when  our 
prayers,  our  exertions,  our  contributions,  our  time, 
our  talents  are  devoted  to  the  prosperity  and  ex- 
tension of  that  church  whose  divine  character  and 
apostolic  claims  we  humbly  assert  and  maintain. 

But  let  us  remember  that  obvious  rule  of  right — 
"  Of  those  to  whom  much  is  given,  much  will  be 
required."  Planted  as  wo  are,  by  the  good  provi- 
dence of  God,  in  a  part  of  his  spiritual  vineyard  in 
which  we  are  plentifully  favoured  with  the  means 
of  spiritual  improvement,  abimdant  is  the  fruit 
which  we  shall  be  expected  to  bring  forth.  That 
Jesus  who,  we  believe,  rose  from  the  dead  and 
establ'shed,  before  his  ascension,  his  church  and 
kingdom,  and  who  now  sits  in  heaven  as  its  Head 
and  Ruler,  will  come  to  be  the  Judge  of  the  world, 


THE  LTFE  AND  ACTS  OF  JESUS.  37S 

How  great  should  be  our  solicitude,  that  when  he 
comes,  as  he  may,  by  his  messenger  death,  in  u 
moment  which  we  think  not  of,  he  may  find  us 
doing  his  will,  walking  blameless  in  his  command- 
ments and  ordinances,  waiting  in  faith  and  patienco 
for  his  coming. 

Lord  mn\  Master,  may  we  then  enter  into  the 
paradise  of  God,  and  finally  iiave  our  perfect  con- 
summation and  bliss,  both  in  body  and  soul,  in  thy 
eternal  and  everlasting  glory. 


SERMON  XXXL 


THE  IMPORTANCE  OF  BEING  PARTAKERS  OF  THE  HOLY 
GHOST. 


Heprews  vi.  4. 
Made  partakers  of  the  Holy  Ghost. 

The  doctrine  of  the  influences  of  tlie  Holy  Spirit 
upon  the  human  soul,  is  a  fundamental  doctrine  of 
the  Gospel.  The  most  superficial  observer  of  hu- 
man nature  must  acknowledge  and  deplore  its 
frailty  and  corruption.  The  understanding  is  liable 
to  error,  the  affections  tend  to  excessive  indul- 
gence, the  will  is  averse  to  that  which  is  good,  and 
numerous  are  the  temptations  to  which,  thus  weak 
and  corrupt  in  his  understanding,  his  will,  and  his 
affections,  man  is  exposed  in  this  evil  world.  Hence 
results  the  necessity  of  divine  agency  in  his  resto- 
ration to  truth  and  virtue,  and  his  victory  over 
temptation.  What  this  divine  agency  shall  be,  is 
a  point  purely  of  revelation,  resting  on  the  deter- 
mination of  the  Almighty  Being  who  made  us,  and 
on  whom  we  are  entirely  dependent.  In  the  sacred 
writings  we  find  this  divine  agency,  so  essential  to 
us  in  our  present  ffillen  and  weak  condition,  re- 
vealed in  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  the  gift 
of  which,  the  purchase  of  Christ's  merits,  and  the 
consequence  of  his  ascent  into  heaven,  the  church 
this  day  commemorates.  And  it  is  the  language 
of  inspired  apostles,  that  we  are  not  sufficient  of 


IMPORTANCE  OF  BEING  PARTAKERS,  «&C.        375 

ourselves  to  think  any  thing  as  of  ourselves,  but 
that  our  sufficiency  is  of  God  ;  and  that,  through 
the  sanctification  of  the  Spirit,  we  are  established 
in  holiness,  and  prepared  for  heaveUi 

In  accordance  with  Scripture,  the  agency  of  the 
Divine  Spirit  is  a  prominent  doctrine  of  our  church. 
"  We  have  no  power  to  do  good  works,  pleasant 
and  acceptable  unto  God,"  (tliis  is  her  language  ia- 
one  of  her  articles,)  "  but  by  the  grace  of  God 
giving  us  a  good  will,  and  working  with  us  when 
we  have  that  good  will."  Accordingly  she  prays 
to  God,  that  as,  "  by  his  special  grace  preventing 
us,"  (going  before  us,)  "  he  puts  into  our  minds 
good  desires,  so,  by  his  continual  help  we  may 
bring  the  same  to  good  effect."  And  she  directs 
us  to  offer  earnest  supplication  to  God  to  "  cleanse 
the  thoughts  of  our  hearts  by  the  inspiration  of 
his  Holy  Spirit." 

On  the  subject  of  the  influences  of  the  Divine 
Spirit  many  erroneous  and  dangerous  opinions 
prevail,  against  which  it  is  essential  that  Christians 
should  be  put  on  their  guard. 

Since,  then,  the  operations  of  the  Holy  Spirit  are 
thus  essential,  it  is  of  importance  that  we  correctly 
understand  the  nature  of  these  operations  on  our 
hearts. 

1.  The  operations  of  the  Divine  Spirit  on  our 
minds  are  in  accordance  with  our  intellectual  and 
moral  powers ;  and  therefore  are  not  violent,  but 
gentle  and  persuasive. 

It  is  an  error  to  suppose  that  the  operations  of 
the  Divine  Spirit  are  overpowering  and  violent. 

When,  indeed,  men  were  endowed  with  miracu- 
ious  powers,  over  which  they  had  no  control,  and 


$76  IMIPORTANCE  OP  BEING  PARTAKERS) 

m  which  they  acted  as  they  were  impelled,  the 
operations  of  the  Spirit  were  sometimes  violent ; 
denoted  by  "  a  rushing  migiity  wind,"  and  by 
"  tongues  of  fire."  But  when  men,  as  moral  agents, 
are  to  be  reclaimed  from  sin  and  restored  to  holi- 
ness, then  the  mild  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
may  be  aptly  denoted  by  the  gentleness  of  the 
dove,  under  which  emblem  he  descended  on  our 
blessed  Lord.  Violent  impulses  upon  the  mind 
would  be  incompatible  with  its  freedom,  with  man's 
condition  as  a  moral  agent,  and  with  the  character 
of  God  as  a  moral  Governor.  The  gentle  influx  of 
divine  illumination  and  grace  on  the  soul,  preserves 
it  in  the  possession  of  that  freedom  which  is  essen- 
tial to  man  as  a  moral  agent,  and  which  might  be 
impaired  by  any  violent  impressions.  God  will 
not,,  by  the  operations  of  the  Spirit,  violate  that 
constitution  of  our  nature  which  he  hath  estab- 
lished ;  and  every  man's  consciousness  assures 
bim  that  he  is  free  in  all  his  volitions  and  deter- 
minations. 

In  his  character  as  a  moral  Governor,  the  Al- 
mighty, therefore,  deals  with  men  by  the  force  of 
motives,  by  the  hopes  of  reward  and  the  fears  of 
punishment,  addressed  to  their  understanding  and 
to  their  affections.  This  is  the  mode,  and  the  only 
mode,  by  which  free  agents  can  be  governed.  But 
if  these  motives  were  violently  applied  to  the  mind 
by  the  influences  of  the  Holy  S|)irit,  they  would  no 
longer  resemble  motives  operating  on  free  agents, 
but.  physical  forces  impelling  machines.  In  the 
process  of  conversion  from  sin  to  holiness,  doubt- 
less strong  emotions  often  fill  the  breast  of  the 
sinner.  Remorse  for  his  sins,  and  holy  apprehen- 
sion of  God's  judgments,  often  agitate  his  coh-' 


OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST.  B77 

science.  The  enormity  of  his  transgressions,  the 
greatness  of  his  ingratitude  to  his  gracious  Maker 
and  Benefactor,  and  his  presumption  in  so  long  de- 
fying divine  justice  impressed  upon  his  conscience, 
he  finds  himself  under  the  sentence  of  perdition, 
and  terror  convulses  his  soul.  Miserable  man ! 
guilty  sinner,  thou  hast  cause  to  mourn.  Thy  God, 
thy  Sovereign,  thy  Benefactor,  thy  Judge  offended  ; 
the  mercy,  the  grace,  and  the  love  of  thy  Saviour 
contemned ;  thy  immortal  soul  polluted,  and  in 
danger  of  eternal  perdition — thou  hast  indeed 
cause  to  mourn.  But  when  thy  terrors  become 
the  terrors  of  despair,  they  are  the  result  of  thine 
own  weak  and  disordered  nature;  they  are  not  the 
necessary  attendants  on  genuine  conviction  of  sin; 
they  are  not  the  operations  of  the  Spirit  of  God. 
For  while  it  is  the  office  of  this  Spirit  to  convince 
of  sin,  it  is  also  his  gracious  office  to  direct  the 
troubled  soul  to  that  blood  of  atonement,  faith  in 
which  allays  its  fears,  and  sooths  it  with  the  peace- 
ful emotions  of  humble  hope. 

Be  not  distressed,  Christians,  if  your  penitence 
has  not  been  accompanied  with  violent  agitations 
of  mind  and  terrors  of  conscience.  Sorrow  for 
your  sins,  deep  and  unfeigned  sorrow,  you  must 
indeed  have  felt,  or  you  have  no  pretensions  to  the 
character  of  a  true  penitent.  But  violence  is  no 
characteristic  of  genuine  grief.  If,  under  a  sense 
of  your  guilt  and  unworthiness,  you  have  had  re- 
course, in  humble  confession  and  prayer,  to  the 
throne  of  your  heavenly  Father,  and  found  conso- 
lation and  peace  in  reliance  on  his  mercy  through 
Jesus  Christ,  you  may  rest  satisfied  that  your  sor- 
row for  sin,  destitute  as  it  may  have  been  of  violent 
agitations  of  soul,  has  yet  been  quickened  by  divine 

Vol.  III.  48 


378  IMPORTANCE  OF  BEING  PARTARER& 

grace.  Not  in  the  strong  wind,  not  in  the  earth- 
quake, not  in  the  fire,  but  in  the  still  small  voice, 
does  the  Spirit  of  God,  gentle  as  the  dove,  speak 
to  the  soul. 

Another  error  on  this  subject  is,  that  the  opera- 
tions of  the  Divine  Spirit  are  sudden  and  complete 
in  their  effects. 

2.  The  operations  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  in  our 
sanctification  ami  renovation,  are  not  sudden,  but 
gradual  and  progressive. 

The  heart  of  the  impenitent  sinner  may  indeed 
be  suddenly  struck  with  conviction  ;  some  provi- 
dential dispensation,  nay,  even  some  trivial  occur- 
rence, may  be  the  instrument,  under  the  agency  of 
the  Divine  Spirit,  of  the  sudden  awakening  of  the 
sinner.  So  far  it  is  true  that  the  operations  of  the 
Spirit  are  sometimes  sudden  ;  for  where  the  con- 
firmed sinner  is  awakened,  the  period  may  be  dis- 
tinctly marked.  But  all  the  subsequent  operations 
of  the  Holy  Spirit,  in  the  work  of  renovation,  are 
gradual  and  progressive.  The  disclosure  to  the 
mind,  of  the  evil  and  guilt  of  sin,  of  the  all-suffi- 
ciency of  the  merits  and  grace  of  Christ,  of  the 
excellence  of  the  plan  of  salvation  through  this 
divine  Mediator;  the  love  of  the  Christian  to  his 
God  and  Saviour;  his  humble  trust  in  the  merits 
and  atonement  of  his  divine,  and  compassionate^ 
and  all-sufficient  Redeemer;  his  victory  over  his 
sinful  passions ;  his  advance  in  the  attainment  c+' 
the  Christian  virtues,  humility,  meekness,  patience, 
righteousness — all  which  are  produced  by  the 
agency  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  and  must  be  gradual 
and  progressive.  If  indeed  man's  conversion  from 
sin  to  holiness  be  instantaneous ;  if  divine  grace. 


OP  THE  HOLY  GHOST.  379 

by  one  powerful  operation,  sanctified  his  soul  and 
established  it  in  holiness,  how  unnecessary  and 
absurd  appear  tlie  numerous  exhortations  of  Scrip- 
ture !  "  See  that  ye  receive  not  the  grace  of  God 
in  vain,"  is  an  apostolic  exhortation.  But  this  re- 
sult is  impossible,  if,  at  its  first  operation,  the  do- 
minion of  divine  grace  be  fully  established  in  the 
soul.  "  Grow  in  grace"  is  another  apostolic  ex- 
hortation;  but  if  the  dominion  of  grace  in  the  soul 
be  instantaneous  and  complete,  the  exhortation  is 
destitute  of  meaning.  In  fine,  the  whole  system  of 
exhortations,  of  threats  and  promises,  implies  that 
our  progress  in  the  change  from  sin  to  holiness,  in 
acquiring  the  virtues  and  habits  of  the  new  man  in 
Christ  Jesus,  is  gradual,  and  dependent,  under  the 
blessing  of  th©  Holy  Spirit,  on  our  own  diligence 
and  watchfulness,  on  our  faithful  use  of  the  ap- 
pointed means.  Let  us  beware,  then,  of  the  delu- 
sion, that  our  renovation,  our  establishment  in  the 
Christian  graces  and  virtues,  is  a  sudden  and  in- 
stantaneous operation.  What  then  can  be  the  ne- 
cessity of  circumspection  and  diligence,  in  order 
to  advance  in  all  holy  dispositions,  and  in  all  good 
works'?  This  notion  of  the  sole  and  instantaneous 
operation  of  the  Divine  Spirit  is  calculated  to  ex- 
cite self-confidence  and  presumption.  If  the  great 
work  of  sanctifying  our  corrupt  nature,  and  estab- 
lishing in  our  souls  holy  principles  and  disposi- 
tions, be  at  once  eftecled  by  the  sole  and  powerful 
^wpulse  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  what  necessity  is  there 
ibr  our  own  exertions?  Then  the  warfare  with 
our  sinful  passions,  the  constant  struggle  against 
temptation,  the  earnest  endeavour  to  obtain  the 
mastery  over  every  evil  thought  and  propensity — 
the   essential   duties  of  the  Christian,   which  «o 


380  IMPORTANCE  OF  BEING  PARTAKERS 

many  exhortations  of  the  sacred  writings  urge  and 
enforce — must  appear  unnecessary.  No,  my  bre- 
thren, our  victory  over  our  sinful  passions,  our 
warfare  with  temptation,  our  establishment  in  ho- 
liness, gradually  advancing,  will  never  be  complete 
during  the  course  of  our  mortal  pilgrimage.  In 
every  stage  of  it,  tiie  world  will  assail  us  by  its 
temptations,  will  allure  us  by  its  corrupting  plea- 
sures. Our  great  adversary  will  be  on  the  watch 
to  seize  some  unwary  moment  to  seduce  us  into 
sin,  and  our  treacherous  hearts  will  too  often  yield. 
Our  only  refuge  is  in  prayer  and  watchfulness — ■ 
prayer  to  God,  from  whom  only  cometh  our  help, 
to  nourish  and  strengthen  the  good  desires  which 
Lis  grace  has  excited,  to  quicken  and  advance  our 
progress  in  holiness  and  virtue — and  watchfulness, 
lest  temptation,  in  some  of  its  various  and  seduc- 
tive forms,  lead  us  into  sin,  and  retard  our  progress 
in  the  Christian  life,  if  not  finally  frustrate  our  sal- 
vation. 

For,  my  brethren,  it  is  of  the  utmost  importance 
to  recollect  that  the  influences  of  the  Holy  Spirit 
are  not  irresistible. 

The  contrary  opinion  cannot  be  reconciled  with 
that  character  of  man,  as  free  to  choose  the  evil 
and  refuse  the  good,  which  constitutes  him  a  moral 
agent,  and  renders  him  the  just  subject  of  com- 
mendation or  censure,  of  reward  or  punishment. 
If  the  grace  which  puts  into  his  mind  good  desires, 
which  purifies  his  affections,  which  stirs  up  his  will, 
and  enables  him  to  bring  his  good  desires  and  re- 
solutions to  good  eflTect,  be  irresistible,  not  in  any 
degree  subject  to  his  control,  it  is  evident  that  man 
is  not,  in  any  sense,  the  master  of  his  own  actions. 
He  then  differs  from  an  ingenious  piece  of  mecha- 


OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST.  381 

nism  only  in  the  circumstance  that  the  irresistible 
force  which  impels  this  is  physical,  while  tiie  om- 
nipotent power  which  controls  him  is  moral.  The 
eflect,  however,  in  both  cases,  is  certain  and  un- 
avoidable— the  power,  in  both  cases,  supreme,  and 
irresistibly  impelling.  There  is  no  difference  be- 
tween natural  and  moral  inability,  between  physical 
and  moral  necessity,  but  in  name  :  they  both  effec- 
tually preclude  freedom  of  choice,  and  are  incom- 
patible with  free  agency.  But  this  exalted  charac- 
teristic of  our  nature  our  own  consciousness  will 
never  permit  us  to  doubt;  no  metaphysical  reason- 
ing can  ever  persuade  him  who  attends  to  the 
movements  of  his  own  mind,  to  believe  that  any 
secret  and  irresistible  power  controls  the  deter- 
mination of  his  will  and  impels  his  actions.  The 
Author  of  our  nature,  therefore,  can  never  be  the 
Author  of  a  doctrine  which  plainly  and  directly 
contradicts  one  of  its  essential  principles- — free 
agency. 

This  strong  presumptive  argument  against  the 
doctrine  of  irresistible  grace  derives  conclusive 
force  from  the  sacred  oracles  ;  for  there  we  find 
the  doctrine  opposed  by  the  essential  characteris- 
tics of  the  plan  of  salvation,  which  freely  offers 
unmerited  blessings  to  sinful  man  on  certain  con- 
ditions or  qualifications,  to  perform  or  acquire 
which  divine  aids  are  offered  to  him,  everlasting 
rewards  promised  him,  and  never-ending  punish- 
ments threatened  him.  Operate  on  man  irresist- 
ibly— maintain  that,  in  the  great  work  of  his  spi- 
ritual renovation,  divine  grace  acts  with  certainty 
and  with  resistless  force,  and  you  not  only  change 
the  operations  of  the  intellect  into  the  movements 
of  matter,  but  you  stamp  with  inconsistency  and 


382     IMPORTANCE  OP  BEING  PARTAKERS 

absurdity  the  urgent  exhortations,  the  interesting 
promises,  and  the  alarming  threatenings  of  the 
word  of  God.  No ;  the  doctrine  which  leads  to 
these  impious  conclusions  is  explicitly  disclaimed 
by  the  oracles  of  truth :  in  them  we  are  directed 
to  "make  our  calling  and  election  suref  our  elec- 
tion, therefore,  is  not  absolute — we  are  not  irresist- 
ibly called.  We  are  exhorted  "  not  to  resist  the 
Spirit  of  God ;"  the  Spirit  of  God  may  therefore 
be  resisted.  We  are  warned  "  not  to  quench  the 
Spirit ;"  ihe  Spirit,  therefore,  may  be  quenched. 
Does  this  scriptural  doctrine,  that  we  may  finally 
fall  from  grace,  fill  us  with  apprehensions  and  fears 
that,  through  the  frailty  and  corruption  of  our  na- 
ture, this  may  be  our  lamentable  condition  ?  But 
God,  who  bestows  on  us  his  grace,  is  as  compas- 
sionate as  he  is  omnipotent.  He  will  not  leave  us, 
till  we  wilfully  tear  ourselves  from  his  paternal 
arms.  He  will  cherish  and  revive  the  spark  of  di- 
vine grace  in  our  souls,  till  we  wholly  extinguish  it 
by  our  obstinate  and  long-continued  transgres- 
sions. He  will  not  forsake  us,  till,  hardening  our 
hearts  under  his  repeated  warnings  and  expostula- 
tions, we  prove  that  we  deserve  the  sentence  which 
his  infinite  justice  will  pronounce,  and  we  are  left 
to  eat  of  the  fruit  of  our  own  way,  and  to  be  filled 
with  our  own  devices. 

As  the  influences  of  the  Divine  Spirit  are  not 
irresistible,  neither  are  they  sensible — they  are  not 
to  be  distinguished  from  the  acts  of  our  own  minds 
— we  know  them  only  by  their  fruits. 

The  Holy  Spirit  enlightens  the  understanding, 
regulates  the  will,  and  purifies  the  affections.  All 
this  holy  change  in  our  souls  is  produced  by  a 
powerful  indeed,  but,  except  as  to  its  effects,  im- 


OF  THE  HOLY  GHCiST.  38S 

perceptible  agency.  "  The  wind  bloweth  where  it 
listeth,  and  we  hear  the  sound  thereof,  but  cannot 
tell  whence  it  cometh,  nor  whither  it  goeth."  We 
know  the  operation  of  the  wind  only  by  its  effects. 
In  like  manner,  according  to  this  analogy,  which 
our  blessed  Lord  employed,  the  operations  of  the 
Holy  Spirit  are  inscrutable,  and  to  be  known  only 
by  their  fruits.  This  is  a  standard  of  judgment 
which  cannot  deceive  us.  The  possession  of  the 
fruits  of  the  Spirit  is  an  infallible  evidence  of  his 
sanctifying  presence  in  our  souls.  By  no  other 
criterion  can  we  determine  whether  we  are  led  by 
the  Spirit.  No  fervour  of  feeling  is  to  be  trusted  but 
that  which  animates  our  love,  our  confidence,  our 
hope  in  our  God  and  Saviour  ;  and  these  are  among 
the  principal  fruits  of  the  Spirit.  The  Scriptures 
of  truth  lay  down  the  infallible  standard — "  The 
fruits  of  the  Spirit  are  love,  joy,  peace,  long-suffer- 
ing, gentleness,  goodness,  faith,  meekness,  tem- 
perance." Let  us  test  ourselves  by  this  standard. 
Are  our  hearty  animated  and  enlivened  by  supreme 
love  to  God  and  by  love  to  mankind,  by  holy  joy 
in  the  divine  mercy  and  favour  \  Redeemed  from 
all  wrathful  passions,  are  our  souls  the  seat  of 
peace  1  Are  we  long-suffering  under  the  evils  and 
provocations  of  the  world,  gentle  and  easy  to  be 
entreated  I  Does  the  principle  of  goodness  in- 
spire and  animate  all  our  actions  I  Is  our  inter- 
course with  our  fellow-men  regulated  by  fidelity? 
In  our  tempers,  in  our  conversation,  and  in  our 
conduct,  are  we  meek  and  lowly  ?  And  does  tem- 
perance regulate  the  indulgence  of  our  lawful  ap- 
petites and  passions  \  The  soul,  where  these  graces 
reign,  must  be  the  seat  of  that  Divine  Spirit  whose 
agency  alone  can  produce  them.    Wo  are  not  the» 


384      IMPORTANCE  OF  BEING  PARTAKERS 

to  expect  any  sensible  demonstration  of  his  pre- 
sence, any  overwhelming  illumination  or  display 
of  his  power.  When  we  crucify  the  flesh,  with  its 
afi^ections  and  lusts — when  we  are  transformed  by 
the  renewing  of  our  minds — when  love  to  our  God 
and  Saviour,  and  love  to  our  fellow-men,  are  the 
ruling  principles  of  our  hearts — when  we  study  in 
all  things  to  keep  a  conscience  void  of  offence,  and 
in  simplicity  and  godly  sincerity  to  have  our  con- 
versation in  the  world — then  we  may  be  assured 
that  we  are  led  by  the  Spirit  of  God  ;  and  then  we 
may  rejoice  in  his  holy  comfort,  in  his  all-powerful 
guidance  and  protection. 

Lastly.  It  is  an  error  to  suppose  that  the  influ- 
ences of  the  Divine  Spirit  are  not  regular  and  uni- 
form. 

They  are  not  capriciously  and  arbitrarily  be- 
stowed ;  given  at  one  time  or  place,  and  withheld 
at  other  times  and  from  other  places — given  to 
one  individual,  and  withheld  from  others,  accord- 
ing to  the  unknown  and  sovereign  decree  of  God. 
In  the  Old  Testament,  indeed,  there  are  predic- 
tions made  of  special  "  outpourings"  of  God's  Holy 
Spirit ;  but  these  predictions  were  fulfilled  when, 
under  the  Gospel  dispensation,  the  Holy  Spirit  was 
given,  with  his  miraculous  as  well  as  ordinary 
graces,  to  the  church.  So  far  as  is  necessary  to 
enable  them  to  work  out  their  salvation,  divine 
grace  flows  from  the  gracious  Parent  of  the  uni- 
verse to  all  the  fallen  race  of  men.  But  the  influ- 
ences of  the  Holy  Spirit,  in  a  more  abundant  and 
particular  manner,  are  enjoyed  by  all  the  members 
of  the  Christian  church,  that  body  of  (^hrist  for 
which  he  purchased  this  Spirit;  and  on  which  he 


OP  THE  HOLY  GHOST.  385_ 

abundantly  bestows  it,  and  which  it  powerfully  ani- 
mates. All  who  by  baptism  are  admitted  into  this 
church,  enjoy  the  privilege  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to 
raise  them  from  the  death  of  sin  to  the  life  of 
righteousness,  to  enable  them  to  walk  worthy  of 
their  Christian  calling,  to  excite,  and  cherish,  and 
strengthen  the  spiritual  life,  to  sanctify  them  in 
soul  and  body.  Exercising  penitence  and  faith, 
they  receive  further  supplies  of  the  Divine  Spirit 
in  the  "  laying  on  of  hands,"  (the  apostolic  or- 
dinance of  confirmation,)  and  in  the  sacrament  of 
the  Lord's  supper;  and  in  the  worship  of  the  church, 
as  well  as  in  private  merlitation  and  prayer,  doeii 
God  fulfil  his  gracious  promise,  and  give  his  Holy 
Spirit  to  those  who  thus  humbly  ask  it.  In  pro- 
portion to  the  sincerity  and  constancy  with  which 
we  wait  upon  the  Lord  in  humble  prayer  and  in 
the  ordinances  of  his  church,  will  be  the  measure 
of  the  grace  which  he  bestows.  But  if  we  fail 
diligently  and  faithfully  to  use  the  appointed  means, 
God  will  withhold  the  quickening  and  renovating 
influences  of  his  grace.  On  the  theory,  that  God 
bestows  his  Spirit,  not  according  to  the  diligence 
and  fidelity  with  which  we  ask  for,  and  seek  it  in 
the  use  of  the  appointed  means,  but  according  to 
his  sovereign  pleasure,  we  should  impute  to  him  a 
caprice  unworthy  of  his  goodness — we  should  at- 
tribute to  him  all  that  blindness,  and  insensibility, 
and  sin  in  man,  which  result  from  the  absence  of 
that  divine  Monitor,  and  Sanctifier,  and  Guide ; 
and  we  should  destroy  the  most  powerful  motives 
to  use  those  means  which  he  has  enjoined. 

My  brethren,  the  doctrine  of  the  agency  of  that 
divine  Sanctifier,  whose  descent  upon  the  church 

Vol.  HL  49 


t386  IMPORTANCE  OF  BEING  PARTAKERS 

we  this  day  celebrate,  in  the  view  which  has  been 
exhibited  to  you,  so  far  from  being  visionary  and 
enthusiastic,  does  not  present  any  thing  wliich  oar 
sober  judgment  will  condemn.  That  the  omni- 
potent Being  who  made  us^  does  exercise  a  power- 
ful but  invisible  influence  over  our  minds,  without 
violating  our  free  agency,  presents  no  difficulty  to 
those  who  acknowledge  his  supreme  and  almighty 
dominion.  That  the  frailty  and  corruption  of  our 
nature,  in  its  aversion  to  good,  and  its  liability  to 
temptation,  render  this  divine  and  holy  agency 
necessary  for  us,  no  person  acquainted  with  his 
own  heart,  and  with  the  world,  will  deny ;  and 
that  this  divine  agency  is  exerted  l>y  the  Holy 
Ghost,  one  of  the  persons  of  the  Godhead,  is  a 
truth  of  revelation  wliich,  however  incomprehen- 
sible, our  knowledge  of  the  divine  nature,  and  of 
our  own  minds,  does  not  enable  us  to  disprove* 
The  administration  of  the  grace  of  the  Spirit  is 
entirely  rational,  orderly,  and  sober.  This  grace 
is  to  be  obtained  by  the  diligent  use  of  appointed 
means ;  and  it  produces  in  the  soul  that  yields  to 
its  celestial  sway,  those  virtues  which  are  the  or- 
nament of  our  nature,  which  reason  approves  and 
honours,  and  which  will  constitute  the  never-ending 
bliss  of  our  future  existence. 

Seek  then,  brethren,  these  influences  of  tire  Di- 
vine Spirit  with  diligence,  with  constancy,  with 
supreme  solicitude  :  seek  them  in  humble  prayer, 
in  the  worship  and  ordinances  of  Christ's  church  ; 
especially  in  that  holy  supper  where  the  church 
now  calls  you  to  celebrate  the  great  event  when 
the  Holy  Spirit  was  conferred.  Unless  we  are 
the  subjects  of  their   renovating   power,  we  are 


OF  THE  HOLY  GHOST.  387 

estranged  from  God,  the  source  of  holiness  and 
felicity;  we  are  in  bondage  to  sin,  and  under  the 
sentence  of  condemnation.  "  If  any  man  be  in 
Christ,  he  is  a  new  creature,"  is  an  inspired  decla- 
ration ;  and  the  only  sure  evidence  of  this  reno- 
vation is  our  exhibition,  in  their  purity  and  power, 
of  the  fruits  of  the  Spirit. 


SERMON   XXXII. 


THE  DIFFERENT  WAYS  IN  WHICH  WE  MAY  QUENCH  THE 
SPIRIT  OF  GOD. 


Ephesians  iv.  30. 
Grieve  not  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God. 

The  church  this  day  commemorates  an  event  to 
which  she  owes  her  establishment,  her  stabihty 
and  glory,  and  to  which  her  members  must  ascribe 
all  the  holy  graces  and  virtues  which  animate  them. 

The  Holy  Ghost,  descending  as  at  this  time  on 
the  apostles,  and  releasing  them  from  the  gross 
prejudices  which  led  them  to  regard  the  Jewish 
law  as  a  system  which  was  to  last  for  ever,  in- 
spired them  with  a  perfect  and  lively  comprehension 
of  that  great  mystery  which  was  to  be  made  known 
unto  the  Gentiles,  "  Christ,  the  wisdom  and  the 
power  of  God,"  "  God  manifest  in  the  flesh,"  for 
the  salvation  of  the  whole  world.  Cloven  tongues, 
as  of  fire,  sitting  upon  them,  were  an  emblem  of 
the  gift  which  then  endued  them  with  the  power  of 
speaking  different  languages,  that  thus  they  might 
carry  the  glad  tidings  of  salvation  into_all  the  na- 
tions of  the  world  ;  and  the  rushing  mighty  wind 
forcibly  denoted  those  miraculous  powers  by  which 
they  commanded  the  operations  of  nature,  and  thus 
attested  that  God  was  with  them.  The  Spirit  of 
wisdom,  of  understanding,  of  strength,  which  came 
upon  them  from  on  high,  enabled  them  to  plant 


DIFFERENT  WAYS,  &C.  389 

throughout  the  world  the  cross  of  their  Saviour, 
triumphant  over  its  learning,  its  power,  and  its 
persecution. 

But  not  only  these  mighty  and  splendid  gifts,  by 
which  the  apostles  ruled  all  nature,  did  the  Divine 
Spirit  confer,  he  this  day  descended  on  his  church, 
to  abide  with  it  for  ever,  enlightening,  renewing, 
strengthening,  and  consoling  its  members. 

The  doctrine  of  communion  between  the  mind 
and  the  Divine  Being  who  formed  it,  though  fully 
made  known  only  in  the  Gospel  of  Christ,  is  so 
agreeable  to  reason,  that  it  has  been  admitted  and 
cherished  by  the  wise  and  good  in  all  ages.  Man 
feels  so  sensibly  his  dependence — so  many  circum- 
stances perpetually  remind  him  of  his  weakness — 
so  many  objects  in  the  world  around  him  act  upon 
his  senses,  and  call  up,  in  resistless  force,  those 
passions  that  war  against  his  reason  and  his  con- 
science, that  he  is  prompted  to  invoke  the  aid  of 
that  superior  Power  who  made  and  who  sustains 
him,  and  who,  therefore,  can  have  access  to  every 
faculty  and  feeling  of  his  soul. 

What  unbiassed  reason  and  nature  seek,  the 
Scriptures  reveal.  That  Being  whose  spiritual  and 
infinite  essence  is  past  finding  out,  and  whom,  there- 
fore, we  should  adore  as  he  has  displayed  himself 
to  us,  is  revealed  as  subsisting  in  three  co-equal  and 
co-eternal  persons,  the  Father,  the  Son,  and  tlie 
Holy  Ghost — each  divine,  infinite,  and  ctenial,  and 
together  incomprehensibly  constituting  one  God. 
And  in  the  stupendous  and  mysterious  agency  which 
each  exerts  in  man's  salvation,  it  is  the  Father  who, 
being  the  infinite  and  eternal  fountain  of  Deity,  gave 
the  Son  to  be  incarnate  for  our  redemption ;  it  is  the 
Son  who,  full  of  grace  and  truth,  redeems  us  from 


590  DIFPEKENT  WAYS  IN  WHICH  WE 

our  bondage  to  sin,  Satan,  and  death;  and  it  is  the 
Holy  Ghost  who  sanctifies  the  powers  and  affec- 
tions of  our  fallen  nature,  and  thus  renders  us  meet 
for  the  glory  which  Christ,  the  Son,  hath  gone  be- 
fore to  prepare  for  us. 

Various,  powerful,  and  beneficent  are  the  offices 
of  the  third  person  of  the  Godhead,  the  Holy  Ghost : 
— the  quickening  Spirit,  that  penetrates  with  con- 
viction the  hardened  or  secure  conscience — the 
consoling  Spirit,  that  applies  the  promises  of  divine 
mercy  through  a  Saviour's  merits — the  enlightening 
Spirit,  that  sheds  light  on  the  darkened  understand- 
ing—the directing  and  governi?ig  Spirit,  that  influ- 
ences the  determinations  of  our  perverse  wills — 
the  re?wvati7ig  and  sanctifying  Spirit,  that  purifies 
our  carnal  affections ;  without  him  we  can  do  no- 
thing. 

**  I  will  pray  the  Father,"  said  our  blessed  Lord, 
*'  and  he  shall  give  you  another  Comforter,  that  he 
may  abide  with  you  for  ever,  even  the  Spirit  of 
truth  :"  "  he  shall  guide  you  into  all  truth."  "  The 
Spirit  of  God  dvvelleth  in  you."  "  God  hath  sent 
forth  the  Spirit  of  his  Son  into  your  hearts."  "  Ac- 
cording to  his  mercy,  God  saved  us  by  the  washing 
of  regeneration  and  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost." 
^'  God  hath  chosen  us  to  salvation,  through  sancti- 
fication  of  the  Spirit."  "  It  is  the  Spirit  that  help- 
eth  our  infirmities."  "  The  fruit  of  the  Spirit  is  in 
all  goodness,  and  righteousness,  and  truth." 

The  sacred  writings  thus  stating  most  promi- 
nently the  doctrine  of  the  existence  and  agency  of 
the  Holy  Spirit,  we  need  not  wonder  at  the  import- 
ant station  which  this  doctrine  holds  in  our  church. 
To  be  born  of  the  Spirit,  she  lays  down  as  the 
characteristic  of  all  the  true  children  of  God.    She 


iflAY  QUENCH  THE  SPIRIT  OF  GOD.  391 

teaches  us  to  pray  that,  by  this  Spirit,  we  may  have 
a  right  understanding  in  all  things ;  that,  by  his 
inspiration,  we  may  think  those  things  that  are 
good,  and,  by  his  merciful  guiding,  may  perform 
the  same ;  that,  by  this  same  blessed  inspiration, 
God  would  cleanse  the  thoughts  of  our  hearts;  that 
this  same  Spirit  may,  in  all  things,  direct  and  rule 
our  hearts ;  and  that,  by  this  Holy  Spirit,  we  may 
daily  be  renewed.  It  is  impossible  sincerely  to 
unite  in  the  prayers  of  our  church,  and  not  believe 
or  realize  the  agency  of  the  Divine  Spirit  on  the 
soul.  Let  us  beware,  brethren,  of  doubting  or 
neglecting  a  doctrine  thus  prominently  set  forth  as 
a  cardinal  doctrine  of  the  plan  of  salvation  through 
a  divine  Saviour  and  Sanctifier.  The  Scriptures 
assure  us  that  the  Holy  Spirit  dwelleth  in  us,  the 
Author  and  Preserver  of  our  spiritual  life,  and  we 
should  gratefully  adore  God's  wonderful  conde- 
scension and  goodness  in  making  us  the  temples 
of  the  Holy  Ghost.  We  should  cherish  his  gracious 
influences  and  his  consoling  suggestions,  and  yield 
to  his  enlightening  and  sanctifying  energies.  We 
should  take  heed  that  we  do  not  despite  to  the 
Spirit  of  grace,  lest,  provoked  by  our  obstinate 
rejection  of  the  inestimable  gifts  and  graces  of  the 
Holy  Spirit,  God  swear  in  his  wrath  that  we  shall 
not  enter  into  his  rest. 

For  it  is  a  truth,  which  renders  this  doctrine  of 
the  agency  of  the  Divine  Spirit  ia  all  respects  sober 
and  rational,  and  clears  it  from  the  charge  of  being 
enthusiastic,  that  his  operations  entirely  accord  with 
the  movements  of  our  own  minds — are  not  to  be 
distinguished  from  them — and  may  be  resisted. 
When  we  check  evil  thoughts,  when  we  resist  evil 
purposes,  when  we  subdue  sinful  passions — and  or 


392  DIFFERENT  WAYS  IN  WHICH  WE 

the  contrary,  when  we  think  a  good  thought,  when 
we  resolve  to  do  what  is  right,  when  all  our  affec- 
tions are  in  pious  and  virtuous  exercise;;  we  are  not 
conscious  of  any  agency  within  us,  but  that  of  our 
understandings,  our  wills,  and  our  affections,  and 
are  also  conscious  of  onr  perfect  control  over  them. 
It  is  on  the  faith  of  revelation  solely  that  we  ascribe 
the  quickening,  predominating,  and  controlling  in- 
fluence in  all  our  good  thoughts,  resolutions,  and 
feelings,  to  the  incomprehensible  but  powerful 
energy  of  the  Spirit  of  God. 

The  various  offices  which  the  Holy  Spirit  sus* 
tains  towards  us,  impose  on  us  corresponding  du- 
ties, by  the  neglect  of  which  we  resist  and  grieve 
him.  The  remainder  of  this  discourse,  then,  will 
be  usefully  employed  in  considering  in  ichat  way 
ice  may  incur  the  guilt  of  resisting  and  grieving 
the  Spirit  of  God,  and  the  enormity  and  danger  of 
this  conduct. 

It  is  th«  office  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  enlighten, 
10  sanctify,  and  to  console.  In  each  of  these  re- 
spects we  may  incur  the  guilt  of  rejecting  and 
srievini?  him. 

1.  We  may  grieve  him,  by  obstinately  resisting 
his  illuminations,  or  by  our  inattention  to  them. 

"  No  man,"  says  our  blessed  Lord,  "  knoweth 
the  things  of  God,  save  the  Spirit  of  God."  It  is 
the  office  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  conduct  all  the  di- 
vine dispensations  to  the  world,  to  declare  the 
counsels  and  to  unfold  the  revelations  of  God's 
will.  It  is  his  primary  office,  as  the  Saviour  pro- 
mised, to  lead  Christians  into  the  knowledge  of 
divine  truth,  to  open  their  understandings,  to  com- 
prehend the  hidden  things  of  God's  law,  and  by 


MAY  QUENCH  THE  SPIRIT  OF  GOD.  39^ 

his  secret,  but  powerful  influences,  to  give  them 
that  spiritual  discernment  by  which  they  see,  and 
acknowledge,  and  feel  the  nature,  the  excellence, 
and  the  glory  of  divine  truth. 

Brethren,  do  we  then  honour  the  Holy  Spirit,  as 
the  dispenser  of  all  saving  knowledge,  the  almighty 
Agent  by  which  God  reveals  his  will  and  applies  it 
to  the  heart!  Sensible  of  the  blindness  and  weak- 
ness of  our  understandings,  and  of  the  power  of 
prejudice  and  of  passion  to  obscure  and  enslave 
them — lamenting  our  aversion  to  divine  truth,  and 
^ur  incompetency  to  discern,  and  duly  to  value  the 
excellence,  and  importance,  and  glory  of  spiritual 
objects — do  we  thankfully  look  to  the  illuminating 
guidance  of  that  Spirit  by  whom  only  we  can  have 
a  right  judgment  in  all  things  1.  Discarding  a  vain 
conlidence  in  the  powers  of  our  own  intellect,  and 
humbling  its  aspiring  claims,  do  we  habitually  and 
reverently  recur  to  the  word  of  God  as  the  only 
source  and  standard  of  divine  knowledge?  Is 
every  deduction  of  our  own  reason  measured  by 
this  unerring  rule  1  Is  every  system  which  human 
genius  may  have  fondly  formed  and  cherished, 
when  opposed  by  the  clear  and  explicit  revela- 
tion of  God's  holy  word,  without  hesitation,  aban- 
doned and  renounced  1  Are  we  willing,  and  do 
we  constantly  endeavour  to  bring  every  aspiring 
thought  and  every  lofty  imagination  into  captivity 
to  the  will  of  God,  who  has  a  supreme  claim 
to  the  homage  of  our  intellect,  and  whose  will  is 
that  perfect  and  eternal  source  of  right  wliich 
every  created  intelligence  is  bound  to  adore  1  Do 
we  hear  or  read  his  holy  word  with  minds  deeply 
impressed  with  reverence  for  his  glorious  perfec- 
tions, with  devout  gratitude  for  the  gracious  mani- 

Vol.  hi.  50 


394  DIFFERENT  WAYS  IN  WHICH  WE 

festation  of  his  will  in  the  Scriptures  of  his  truthj. 
and  with  a  sacred  resolution  to  receive  and  cherish 
that  holy  will,  whatever  fond  opinions  it  may  re- 
quire  us   to   renounce,  whatever   passions  it  may 
command   us  to  subdue  ?     Do  we  earnestly,   and 
constantly,    and    sincerely    pray   that    this   Divine 
Spirit  may  illumine  our  understandings,  and  sub- 
duing their  pride  and  prejudices,  impress  on  them 
the  awful  importance  and  value  of  divine  truths  1 
Do  we  receive  and  cherish  with  attention  and  zeal 
the  holy  inspirations  of  this  sacred  Guide,  leading 
us  to  the  knowledge  of  truth  and  duty  by  the  de- 
ductions of  reason,  the  admonitions  of  conscience, 
and  the  express  declarations  of  the  word  of  God  I 
Do  we  cherish  that  humble  distrust  of  the  strength 
of  our  own  reason,  that  lively  and  supreme  love  of 
divine  truth,  which  are  the  only  dispositions  which 
will  lead  us  to  receive  and  to  value  the  illumina- 
tions of  the  Holy  Spirit "? 

My  brethren,  these  are  questions  of  high  import- 
ance. Tlie  Divine  Spirit  will  convey  his  enlighten- 
ing influences  only  to  the  mind  that  is  prepared 
with  humility  to  receive  them,  and  with  diligent 
and  devoted  attention  to  cherish  them.  Obstinate 
and  wilful  blindness  he  will  not  remove.  The  good 
seed  which  he  sows,  scattered  on  a  light  and  super- 
ficial mind  occupied  with  vain  and  trifling  pursuits, 
will  not  take  deep  and  abiding  root ;  or,  however 
eager  and  sincere  the  attention  which  at  first  re- 
ceives and  cherishes  it,  it  may  be  afterwards  choked 
by  the  weeds  of  prejudice  and  passion.  An  indo- 
lent indiilerence  to  divine  truth  and  to  our  spiritual 
interests,  an  obstinate  insensibility  to  the  admoni- 
tions of  the  Holy  Spirit,  will  provoke  him  to  with- 
draw his  enlightening  inlluenoes ;  and  then  pride 


MAY  QUENCH  THE  SPIRIT  OF  GOD.  395 

and  prejudice  gaining  dominion  over  our  minds, 
they  will  embrace  and  cherish  error  with  a  zeal 
and  resolution  which  truth  cannot  excite;  and  fol- 
lowing their  own  f^dlacious  dictates,  instead  of  the 
unerring  light  of  the  Divine  Spirit,  we  shall  recede 
further  and  further  from  God  and  salvation,  until 
we  become  confirmed  in  spiritual  blindness  and 
insensibility.  Oh!  deplorable  condition  !  in  which 
the  soul  is  deserted  by  God,  the  infinite  source  of 
truth,  and  left  to  the  ruinous  sway  of  its  own  pride, 
and  prejudices,  and  passions.  Spirit  of  grace,  let 
not  our  frequent  resistance  of  thy  inspirations,  oiir 
indolence  and  insensibility  under  thy  admonitions, 
provoke  thee  to  seal  us  up  in  error  and  impiety! 
O  God,  measure  thy  dispensations  to  us,  not  by 
our  deserts,  but  by  thy  infinite  mercies,  and  keep 
us  ever,  by  the  light  and  power  of  thy  Spirit,  m 
the  knowledge,  the  love,  and  service  of  thee. 

2.  It  is  the  oflSce  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to  sanctify 
our  corrupt  nature  ;  and  in  this  respect  we  may 
resist  and  grieve  him,  by  our  wilful  impenitence 
and  perseverance  in  sin. 

"  God  hath  chosen  us  to  salvation,"  saith  the 
voice  of  inspiration,  "through  sanctification  of  the 
Spirit."  He  saves  us  by  "  the  washing  of  regener- 
ation and  the  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost."  The 
conscience  must  be  purged  from  dead  works  to 
serve  the  living  God,  the  dominion  of  sin  in  our 
hearts  must  be  subdued,  and  the  image  of  God,  in 
righteousness  and  holiness,  must  be  restored  in 
the  soul,  by  the  power  and  operations  of  the  Spirit 
of  God.  It  is  indeed  a  dictate  of  reason,  that  the 
dominion  of  the  passions  of  our  sinful  nature  can 
be  subverted,  and  the  sway  of  those  graces  estab- 


396  DIFFERENT  WAYS  IN  WHICH  WE 

lished  within  us  that  will  assimilate  us  to  God  and 
prepare  us  for  heaven,  only  by  an  almighty  power. 

But  it  is  also  a  dictate  of  reason,  as  well  as  a 
declaration  of  the  word  of  God,  that,  treating  us 
as  reasonable  and  accountable  agents,  "  his  Spirit 
will  not  always  strive  with  man."  If  we  neglect 
and  despise  his  warnings — if  we  disregard  his  ad- 
monitions— if  we  resist  his  holy  and  renovating 
influences — if,  when  he  would  convince  us  of  our 
guilt,  we  quench  the  conviction  in  sensual  gratifi- 
cations— if,  when  he  would  redeem  us  from  the 
dominion  of  unholy  passions,  wc  cling  to  the  in- 
dulgence of  them  as  our  highest  happiness — if, 
when  he  would  restore  the  image  of  God  in  our 
souls,  we  are  insensible  of  the  glory  and  value  of 
the  gift,  and  prefer  remaining  under  the  degrading- 
dominion  of  the  principles  and  passions  of  our 
fallen  nature — if  we  thus  resist  and  grieve  him, 
can  we  expect  that  he  will  force  on  us  blessings 
which  we  despise—that  by  miraculous  energy  he 
will  convert  us  1  Oh  !  how  great  is  their  presump- 
tion and  folly,  who  suppose  that,  while  wilfully 
impenitent,  that,  while  obstinately  persevering  in 
the  ways  of  sin,  they  will  enjoy  the  pure  and  reno- 
vating presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God  ! 

Brethren,  divine  grace  is  tendered  to  us,  to  re- 
deem us  from  our  miserable  bondage  to  sin ;  and 
shall  we  not  ask,  with  earnestness  and  persever- 
ance, for  the  inestiniable  gift — for  the  means  of 
purifying  our  nature,  and  exalting  it  to  immor- 
tal holiness  and  glory  ^  Is  the  blessed  Spirit  of 
God,  with  all  his  divine  graces  and  consolations, 
waiting  to  take  possession  of  our  hearts — even 
condescending  to  sue  for  admittance  into  them — 
and  shall  we  disregard  his  solicitations?  Who  can 


MAY  QUENCH  THE  SPIRn^  OF  GOD.  397 

describe  the  guilt  of  resisting  and  grieving  the  Spirit 
of  God  \  Yet  this  aggravated  guilt  he  incurs,  who 
continues  in  sin,  in  bondage  to  the  world.  That 
he  may  be  redeemed  from  the  evils  of  his  corrupt 
nature,  that  he  may  be  sanctified  and  restored  to 
the  favour  of  God,  and  fitted  for  immortal  felicity, 
it  is  required  that  he  earnestly  seek  the  aids  of 
divine  grace,  that  he  submit  himself  to  its  guidance, 
that,  by  sincere  penitence  and  lively  faith,  he  cherish 
its  sacred  influences ;  and  the  impenitent  sinner 
not  only  refuses  to  implore  the  influence  of  this 
divine  Sanctifier,  but,  obstinately  continuing  in  sin, 
resists,  and  grieves,  and  does  despite  to  him. 

Will  almighty  Power  be  always  thus  resisted  1 
Spirit  of  God,  shall  thy  grace  be  always  thus  con- 
temned'? Ah  !  "  God  will  arise  to  judgment:"  he 
will  "  avenge  himself  of  his  adversaries."  "  To- 
day, if  ye  will  hear  his  voice,  harden  not  your 
hearts." 

Christians,  who  have  improved  to  your  conver- 
sion from  sin,  and  establishment  in  pieiy  and 
virtue,  the  sanctifymg  grace  of  God,  take  heed 
lest,  by  inattention,  or  by  confidence  and  presump- 
tion, ye  fall  into  sin,  and  grieve  the  Holy  Ghost 
whose  temple  ye  are.  Remember,  the  only  evi- 
dence you  have  yourselves,  the  only  proof  you  can 
give  to  the  world  of  your  change  of  nature,  of  the 
presence  of  the  Holy  Spirit  within  you,  is  your 
bringing  forth  the  fruits  of  the  Spirit  in  holiness 
and  righteousness  of  life.  Watch  and  pray,  then, 
lest  ye  fall  into  temptation,  and  forfeit  your  claim 
to  his  holy  guidance  and  aids. 

3.  Lastly.  It  is  the  ofiice  of  the  Holy  Spirit  to 
console  and  succour  us ;  and  in  this  respect  we 


398  DIFFERENT  WAYS  IN  WHrCH  WE 

may  grieve  him,  when,  depending  on  the  world 
snd  our  own  resolution,  we  contemn  his  consola- 
tions and  succours. 

Blost  absurd,  indeed,  and  criminal,  when  al- 
mighty Power  is  ready  to  succour  us,  to  depend  on 
our  own  strength,  which  has  so  often  foiled  us ! — 
when  the  ineffable  consolations  of  the  Divine  Com- 
forter are  offered  us,  to  rely  on  the  world,  which 
has  so  often  proved  vain  and  deceitful !  To  him 
who  sincerely  implores  his  succour,  the  Holy  Ghost 
will  prove  a  spirit  of  counsel  in  difficulty,  of  strength 
in  temptation,  of  light  in  darkness,  of  courage  and 
zeal  under  every  difficulty.  The  soul  that  ardently 
desires  to  partake  of  his  consolations,  the  Holy 
Ghost  will  visit  with  that  peace  of  mind  which 
passeih  all  understanding,  which  the  world  cannot 
give  nor  take  away. 

Christians,  let  us  then,  in  our  warfare  with  our 
s^iiritnal  foes,  arm  ourselves  with  the  invincible 
power  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  Let  us,  in  all  our  sor- 
rows and  trials,  flee  for  consolation  to  the  blessed 
Comforter,  the  Fountain  of  living  waters,  disre- 
garding the  vain  and  disappointing  comforts  of  the 
world.  Let  us  not  impiously  distrust  the  grace  and 
mercy  of  our  divine  Guide  and  Comforter,  and, 
w!ien  an  ahnighty  arm  is  stretched  out  to  defend 
us,  rely  on  the  arm  of  flesh.  "  Grieve  not  the 
Holy  f^pirit  ofGod." 

Christian  brethren,  how  great  is  the  honour  to 
m'hich  we  are  called,  that  we  should  be  the  subjects 
of  the  grace  of  God,  the  temple  in  which  his  Spirit 
dwells!  What  purity  and  circumspection,  what 
zeal  and  holiness  sliould  distinguisli  and  elevate 
us  1  Shall  we  defile  the  temple  of  God  \  "  If  any 
man  defile  the  temple  of  God,"  saith  the  apostle. 


MAY  QUENCH  THE  SPIRIT  OF  GOD.  399 

••  him  will  God  destroy."  In  our  natural  estate, 
blind  and  erring,  ignorant  of  the  will  of  God,  averse 
to  his  authority  and  laws,  in  bondage  to  sin  and 
misery,  with  what  gratitude  should  we  receive  tlie 
gift  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  designed  to  restore  us  from 
this  miserable  state,  and  to  exalt  us  into  the  light 
of  divine  truth,  into  the  holiness  and  the  happiness 
of  heaven  !  With  what  humble  and  grateful  zeal 
and  diligence  should  we  submit  to  his  inspectionj 
follow  his  guidance,  and  seek  his  gracious  influ- 
ences in  the  worship  and  ordinances  of  his  church, 
and  especially  in  that  supper,  in  which  we  this  day 
commemorate  his  advent !  If  we  resist,  and  grieve, 
and  do  despite  to  him,  what  plea  shall  we  urge,  at 
the  tribunal  of  final  judgment,  against  our  con- 
demnation? Almighty  aid  was  offered  us,  and  we 
refused  it.  Infinite  wisdom  undertook  to  guide 
us  :  we  chose  rather  the  erring  lights  of  our  own 
reason.  Divine  grace  was  seeking  admission  into 
our  souls,  to  renew  and  purify  them  :  we  chose 
to  remain  in  slavery  to  sin  ;  we  resisted  God's 
grace,  we  did  despite  to  his  Spirit,  we  counted  the 
blood  of  the  covenant,  wherewith  we  were  sanc- 
tified, an  unholy  thing. 

Spirit  of  God !  save  us  from  this  consummatioa 
of  impiety  and  guilt — blasphemy  against  thee— 
contempt  of  thy  succours,  rejection  of  thy  grace. 


SERMON    XXXUI. 


THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 


ROMANS  viii.  16,  17. 

The  Spirit  ilselt*  bearcth  witness  with  our  spirit,  that  we  are  the 
children  of  God  :  and  if  children,  then  hdirs:  heirs  of  God,  and 
joint-heirs  with  Christ. 

This  passage  exhibits  a  most  interesting  view 
of  the  exalted  condition  of  Christians.  They  are 
"children  of  God,"  enjoying  the  intimate  favour  of 
that  glorious  Being  who  is  possessed  of  every  per- 
fection, and  in  whose  favour  substantial  and  ever- 
lasting felicity  is  to  be  found.  They  are  "heirs  of 
God,"  entitled  to  that  inheritance  of  glory  which 
God  from  the  fulness  of  his  bliss  hath  prepared  for 
them.  They  are  "  joiwi-heirs  with  Christ;"  asso- 
ciated with  him  in  a  title  to  that  glory  to  which,  as 
the  Son  of  God,  in  his  human  nature  he  is  exalted 
in  heaven. 

This  passage  also  assures  to  them  these  bless- 
ings, not  only  by  the  testimony  of  their  own  hearts, 
but  also  by  the  witness  of  the  Spirit  of  God.  "  The 
Spirit  itself  beareth  witness  with  our  Spirit,  that 
we  are  the  children  of  God  :  and  if  children,  then 
heirs;  heirs  of  God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ." 

Christians!  let  me  at  this  time  call  you  to  con- 
template your  privileges,  as  described  in  the  text; 
and  the  nature  of  the  testimony  by  wliich  they  are 
assured  to  you. 


THE  WITNESS  OP  THE  SPIRIT.  401 

The  privileges  of  Christians. 
The  testimony  by  which   these   privileges  are 
assured  to  them. 

I.  The  privileges  of  Christians. 

1    They  are  "  the  children  of  God." 

This  interesting  appellation  implies  the  most 
tender  affection,  the  most  anxious  care,  not  of  some 
earthly  parent,  of  goodness,  wisdom,  and  power 
enlarged  and  exalted — but  of  that  infinite  and  eter- 
nal Being  whose  goodness,  wisdom,  and  power 
transcend  all  human  conception.  Animate  as  well 
as  inanimate  creation  is  the  work  of  that  Almiglity 
Jehovah,  who,  in  this  sense,  is  the  Father  of  the 
universe.  All  intellectual  and  moral  beings  ac- 
knowledge, as  their  Father,  him,  of  whom  the  whole 
family  in  heaven  and  earth  is  named :  all  men  are, 
in  one  sense,  the  sons  of  God,  as  they  derive  from 
him  their  life,  their  reason,  their  moral  perception, 
their  capacity  for  happiness, — and  are  destined  by 
him  for  the  enjoyment  of  his  favour,  for  everlast- 
ing felicity  in  his  presence.  But  sin  has  made  them 
strangers  to  their  Father's  home — aliens  from  his 
family.  By  nature,  they  are  children  of  wrath ; 
that  is,  without  any  covenant  title  to  his  favour; 
and,  on  account  of  the  actual  transgressions  which 
they  commit,  subject  to  his  eternal  displeasure. 

But,  thanks  to  the  goodness  and  mercy  of  their 
heavenly  Father,  they  are  not  left  destitute  of  the 
means  of  return  to  his  family  and  home,  and  of 
regaining  his  love  and  favour.  On  the  conditions 
of  truly  repenting  of  their  sins,  of  exercising  lively 
faith  in  the  merits  of  him  whom  God  hath  set  forth 
as  the  Saviour  of  the  world,  and  of  steadfastly  pur- 
posing to  lead  a  new  life,  all  who  are  admitted  by 

Vol.  III.  51 


402  TftE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT*. 

bapti'^m  into  that  spiritual  family  which  is  chosen 
out  of  the  world,  become  again  "  children  of  God." 
God,  as  their  Father,  promises  to  them  forgiveness, 
to  purify  their  hearts  by  his  Holy  Spirit,  and  to 
gi\  ■  them  the  spirit  of  adoption.  Fellow-citizens 
with  the  saints,  and  of  the  household  of  God,  they 
are  born,  not  of  corruptible  seed,  but  of  incorrupt- 
ible, by  the  word  of  God,  which  abideth  for  ever. 
Ahu  if,  as  his  children,  they  render  to  God  the 
constant  homage  and  affection  of  their  hearts,  and 
serve  him  with  filial  reverence  and  fear,  he  will 
continue  to  extend  to  them  his  fatherly  protection 
and  love. 

2.  Not  only  are  Christians  children  of  God — 
they  are  also  heirs  of  God. 

"  If  children,"  is  the  inference  of  the  apostle, 
"  then  heirs,  heirs  of  God." 

Of  little  value  indeed  would  be  the  privileges  of 
"  children  of  God"  which  Christians  enjoy,  if  he 
had  not  in  reserve  for  them,  blessings  beyond  this 
frail  and  transitory  life.  For  the  privileges  of  chil- 
dren in  this  their  state  of  exile,  they  only  imper- 
fectly enjoy  their  home :  their  heavenly  Father's 
house  is  in  heaven  ;  and,  distant  from  it,  they  here 
only  in  a  small  degree  partake  of  that  favour  which, 
in  heaven,  God  their  Father  will,  in  its  rich  fulness, 
bestow  upon  them.  They  here  only  imperfectly 
partake  of  that  divine  image,  as  God's  children, 
which  in  heaven  will  be  fully  impressed  upon  their 
souls.  And  here,  clothed  as  they  are  with  an 
earthly  tabernacle,  they  must  wait  in  earnest  de- 
sire to  be  clothed  upon  with  a  house  which  is  from 
heaven. 

Christians,  then,  are  heirs  of  God.  He  hath 
prepared  for  them  blessings,  of  vvhiQb,  in  the  pre- 


THE  WITNESS  OP  THE  SPIRIT.  40B 

sent  life,  they  only  imperfectly  partake.  An  inhe- 
ritance is  reserved  for  them,  incorruptible,  and  that 
fadeth  not  away — the  inheritance  of  the  saints  ia 
light.  A  kiiigdom  is  established  for  them,  which 
oannot  be  moved.  A  city  is  preparing  for  them, 
which  hath  foundations,  whose  builder  and  maker 
is  God.  So  certain  is  their  final  possession  of 
these  blessings,  provided  they  do  not,  by  disobe<li- 
ence,  forfeit  their  Father's  love,  that  the  apostle 
speaks  of  Christians  as  already  "  sitting  in  hea- 
venly places  in  Christ  Jesus ;"  as  already  "  come 
unto  Mount  Zion,  the  city  of  the  living  God,  the 
heavenly  Jerusalem ;"  as  having  already  joined 
"  the  innumerable  company  of  angels,  and  the 
spirits  of  the  just  made  perfect;"  as  already  be- 
holding, in  the  unclouded  radiance  of  heaven, 
"  God,  the  Judge  of  all,  and  Jesus,  the  Mediator 
of  the  covenant.^' 

3.  Christians  are  "joint-heirs  with  Christ." 
Immortal  life  and  felicity  are  blessings  which  no 
creature  can  merit,  or  which  he  can  exact  from  his 
Almighty  Creator  as  due  to  his  obedience,  how- 
ever perfect;  much  less  are  they  blessings  to  which 
man,  as  a  sinner,  can  lay  claim.  They  are  the  free 
gift  of  God,  through  his  Son  Jesus  Christ.  Him 
hath  God  exalted  to  be  *'  head  over  all  things  to 
his  church,"  his  redeemed  people — the  Author  to 
all  who  believe  in  him,  of  spiritual  life  and  felicity. 
Of  that  kingdom  of  glory  which  is  to  subsist  for 
ever  in  the  power  and  in  the  felicity  of  the  God- 
head, Jesus  Christ,  in  his  capacity  as  Mediator,  is 
the  head ;  and  they  who,  through  the  strength  and 
protection  of  this  their  divine  Leader,  overcome  in 
that  spiritual  contest  to  which  they  are  called  with 
the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  great  adversary,  are 


404  THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIllIT. 

finally  to  be  admitted  to  share  with  him  the  felicity 
and  glory  of  this  his  kingdom— in  the  figurntive 
language  of  Scripture,  to  sit  with  him  on  his  throne. 
He,  their  divine  head  and  Saviour,  hath,  by  the 
merit  of  his  sufferings  and  death,  purchased  for 
them  that  heavenly  inheritance,  to  which,  infinitely 
exalted  as  it  is  above  their  deserts,  no  services  of 
their  own  could  possibly  entitle  them.  He  hath 
gone,  in  that  glorified  human  nature  which  he  as- 
suined  in  order  to  become  their  Redeemer,  to  take 
possession  of  this  inheritance  of  glory.  By  his 
resurrection  from  the  dead  he  became  "  the  first- 
born among  many  brethren,"  giving  to  "  as  many 
as  received  him,  power  to  become  the  sons  of 
God,"  and  finally  exalting  them  to  be  "joint-heirs 
with  himself  of  everlasting  glory." 

In  this  your  title  then,  Christians,  of  "  joint- 
heirs  with  Christ,"  you  are  called  to  realize  the 
important  truths,  that  your  salvation,  unattainable 
by  human  efforts,  is  the  work  of  him  to  whom,  as 
your  Redeemer,  all  power  is  given  in  heaven  and 
on  earth  ;  and  that  with  him,  the  first-born  from 
the  dead,  and  first  entering  on  the  possession  pur- 
chased by  his  meritorious  cross  and  passion,  you 
are  finally  to  share  the  felicity  of  that  everlasting 
life  which  is  the  free  gift  of  God  through  Jesus 
Christ. 

Christians,  then,  are  "  children  .of  God,  heirs  of 
God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ."  They  enjoy  the 
favour  of  God,  their  heavenly  Father;  they  are 
destined  for  the  enjoyment  of  the  felicity  of  his 
presence ;  they  are  to  share  with  their  highly  ex- 
alted Saviour  in  the  glories  of  that  heavenly  king- 
dom, of  whicli  he  is  the  head  and  ruler. 


THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT.  405 

Highly  interesting  to  us  must  be  the  testimony 
which  assures  these  privileges  to  us. 

II.  The  testimony  by  which  the  privileges  of 
Christians  are  assured  to  them. 

1.  "  The  Spirit  itself  beareth  witness  with  our 
spirit."  The  exalted  privileges  of  Christians  are 
assured  to  them  by  the  twofold  witness  of  the 
Spirit  and  of  their  own  hearts.  It  is  not  the  Spirit 
alone  witnessing  to  our  hearts — he  witnesses  with 
them.  The  witness  then  is  distinct — that  of  our 
own  hearts,  and  that  of  the  Spirit  of  God. 

"  If  our  heart  condemn  us  not,"  saith  the  apostle 
John,  "  then  have  we  confidence  towards  God." 
And  the  apostle  Paul  speaks  in  the  person  of  sin- 
cere Christians — "  Our  rejoicing  is  this,  the  testi- 
mony of  our  conscience,  that  in  simplicity  and 
godly  sincerity  we  have  had  our  conversation  in 
the  world."  When  then  our  hearts  do  not  condemn 
us  of  habitual  and  wilful  violations  of  the  laws  of 
God  ;  when  they  do  not  accuse  us  of  neglect  of  his 
holy  word,  worship,  and  ordinances — when,  on  the 
contrary,  they  bear  testimony  to  the  sincerity,  the 
fervency,  and  the  constancy  of  our  desires  to  serve 
him ;  when  unfeigned  sorrow  for  all  our  transgres- 
sions, lively  faith  in  the  merits  of  Jesus,  the  Re- 
deemer of  the  world,  love  to  God,  and  love  to  man, 
are  the  emotions  and  principles  that  regulate  our 
affections  and  our  conduct ;  when  thus  conscience, 
that  faithful  witness,  arrays  against  us  no  wilful 
sin  for  which  we  have  not  deeply  repented,  no  infir- 
mity against  which  we  have  not  sedulously  guarded, 
and  which  we  have  not  humbly  confessed ;  when  it 
is  her  testimony  that  the  graces  and  virtues  of  the 
Christian  character  have  animated  our  hearts  and 


406  THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 

shone  forth  in  our  lives,  and  that,  rich  in  ^ood 
works,  and  walking  in  the  comrnandmenls  and  or* 
dinances  of  God,  we  have  adorned  the  doctrine  of 
God  our  Saviour — then  we  have  the  witness  of  our 
own  spirit  that  we  are  "  children  of  God,  heirs  of 
God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ."     But, 

2.  These  exalted  privileges  are  also  assured  to 
Christians  by  the  witness,  external  and  internal, 
public  and  private,  of  the  Holy  Spirit  of  God. 

The  external  and  public  witness  of  the  Spirit 
consists  in  those  miraculous  gifts  whereby  the 
truth  of  the  Gospel,  and  of  all  its  promises,  was 
fully  established.  This  Gospel  proclaims  to  all 
those  who,  humbly  renouncing  their  sins,  stead- 
fastly believe  in  Jesus  Christ,  and  obey  him  as 
their  Lord  and  Master,  a  title  to  pardon,  to  the 
favour  of  God,  and  to  the  glory  and  bliss  of  heaven. 

When,  therefore,  the  first  believers  heard  the 
simple  and  illiterate  apostles  of  Jesus  of  Nazareth 
"  speaking  with  divers  tongues,  as  the  Spirit  gave 
them  utterance,"  and,  enlightened  by  this  Spirit, 
declare  "  the  words  of  wisdom  and  knowledge ;" 
when  they  beheld  these  weak  and  despised  men 
endued  with  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  open 
the  eyes  of  the  blind,  unstop  the  cars  of  the  deaf, 
unloose  the  tongue  of  the  dumb,  restore  the  wi- 
thered arm  and  the  diseased  limb;  and,  still  more 
glorious  triumph,  enter  the  domains  of  the  grave 
and  raise  the  dead— when  they  beheld  all  these 
signs,  and  wonders,  and  mighty  works  wrought  by 
the  power  of  that  Spirit  which  Jesus  sent  on  his 
disciples,  tKen  did  they  enjoy  the  witness  of  the 
Spirit,  that  the  Gospel  of  Christ  was  indeed  the 
power  of  God  unto  salvation,  that  all  its  promises 
were  faithful  and  true,  and  that  as  many  as  re- 


THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT.  407 

ceived  it  were  "  children  of  God,  heirs  of  God,  and 
joint-heirs  with  Christ." 

And,  my  brethren,  when  the  faithful  record  of 
these  things  is  open  before  us — a  record  written 
in  the  blood  of  its  authors,  and,  with  every  possible 
mark  of  credibility,  handed  down  as  the  sacred 
testimony  of  eye-witnesses ;  when  the  miraculous 
propagation  of  Christianity,  and  the  constant  ful- 
filment of  prophecies,  add  their  powerful  testimony 
to  the  work  of  the  Spirit  in  the  first  ages  of  Chris- 
tianity, then  do  ice,  Christians  of  these  last  days, 
enjoy  the  witness  of  the  Spirit,  that,  while  faithful 
to  him  who  hath  quickened  us  from  the  death  of 
sin  to  the  life  of  righteousness,  we  are  "  children 
of  God,  heirs  of  God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ." 

But  there  is  the  internal  and  private  witness  of 
the  Spirit  assuring  to  Christians  the  same  exalted 
privileges. 

And  this  witness  consists  in  his  renovating  and 
sanctifying  power  on  the  soul. 

The  great  object  of  the  reasoning  of  the  apostle 
in  the  verses  preceding  the  text,  is  to  show  that 
holy  affections  and  a  holy  life  are  the  evidence  of 
being  led  by  the  Spirit.  They  who  are  under  the 
power  of  the  Spirit,  he  says,  "  walk  not  after  the 
flesh :"  they  mind  the  things  of  the  Spirit ;  they 
mortify  the  deeds  of  the  body ;  and  thus  the  Spirit 
witnesseth  with  their  spirit  that  they  are  the  sons 
of  God. 

The  renovating  and  sanctifying  power  of  divine 
grace,  producing  in  us  all  holy  affections  and  vir- 
tues, is  the  internal  witness  of  the  Spirit. 

In  the  incomprehensible  agency  assigned  in 
Scripture  to  the  three  Persons  of  the  Godhead  in 
the  work  of  man's  redemption,  the  Holy  Ghost  is 


THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 

represented  as  the  Author  of  our  spiritual  life.  All 
the  virtues  which  animate  and  adorn  our  hearts,  all 
the  good  works  which  shine  forth  in  our  lives,  are 
attributed  to  his  invisible  but  powerful  operations, 
quickening  us  from  the  death  of  sin  to  the  life  of 
righteousness,  working  together  with  us — in  the 
appropriate  language  of  our  church,  "going  before 
us,  that  we  may  have  a  good  will ;  and  working 
with  us,  when  we  have  that  good  will ;"  and  by  his 
instruction  we  think  the  things  that  are  good,  and 
by  his  merciful  guiding  perform  the  same ;  and  in 
all  things  it  is  he  who  directs  and  rules  our  hearts. 
The  holy  graces  and  virtues,  then,  which  animate 
and  rule  our  souls,  are  the  evidences  that  he  dwells 
in  us  by  his  sanctifying  power ;  and  by  them  he 
witnesses  that  we  are  translated  from  the  bondage 
of  corruption  into  the  glorious  liberty  of  the  sons 
of  God. 

You  behold,  then,  professing  Christians,  the 
standard  by  which  you  may  test  your  title  to  the 
glorious  privileges  of  your  Christian  calling. 

The  descent  of  the  Holy  Ghost  upon  the  apos- 
tles, and  the  miraculous  works  which,  through  his 
power,  they  performed ;  the  establishment  of  the 
Gospel  in  the  world  by  their  supernatural  labours, 
and  the  constant  fulfilment  of  those  prophecies 
which  the  Holy  Ghost  indited — these  are  general 
evidences  to  Christians,  they  are  the  general  wit- 
ness of  the  Spirit  that  those  who  have  received,  by 
a  lively  and  obedient  faith,  that  Saviour  whom  this 
Gospel  sets  forth,  are  "  children  of  God,  heirs  of 
God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ." 

But  the  evidence  to  each  Christian  that  he  is 
entitled  to  these  privileges,  must  be  sought  in  the 
^sanctifying  operations  of  the  Spirit  on  his  own 


THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT.  409 

soul.    He  has  been  regenerated  in  baptism,  born 
again  into  a  new  state,  a  state  of  salvation,  and  made, 
on  the  conditions  of  repentance  and  faith,  a  mem- 
ber of  Christ,  a  child  of  God,  and  an  inheritor  of 
the  kingdom  of  heaven.    For  the  apostle  says,  "  Ye 
are  saved  by  the  washing  of  regeneration  ;  and  by 
one  Spirit  we  are  all  baptized  into  one  body,"  and 
thus  enjoy  a  title  to  the  privileges  of  this  body. 
But  these  privileges  of  his  baptismal  regeneration, 
conditionally  conferred,  will  be  forfeited,  unless 
his  baptismal  vows,  which  pledged  him  to  die  to 
sin  and  to  rise  again  unto  righteousness,  be  fulfilled 
— unless,  in  the  language  of  the  apostle,  he  be  the 
subject  of  the  renewing  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  be 
transformed  by  the  renewing  of  his  mind.     In  our 
regeneration,  we  are  called  into  a  state  of  salvation, 
a  state  in  which  the  forgiveness  of  our  sins,  and  all 
the  blessings  of  salvation,  are  conferred  on  us,  on 
certain  conditions.    Our  renovation  consists  in  the 
fulfilment  of  these  conditions ;  by  being  born  of 
God ;  by  mortifying  our  sinful  passions— in  the 
figurative  language  of  Scripture,  by  putting  off  the 
old  man,  and,  in  the  same  figurative  language,  by 
putting  on  the  new  man,  created  anew  in  Christ 
Jesus  unto  good  works.   If  then,  through  the  power 
of  divine  grace,  pledged  to  us  as  the  members  of 
Christ's  mystical  body  the  church,  and  conveyed 
to  us  through  its  ministry  and  ordinances,  we  are 
quickened  from  the  death  of  sin  unto  the  life  of 
righteousness,  and  crucify  the  flesh  with  its  aflJec- 
tions  and  lusts;  abound  in  all  the  fruits  of  the 
Spirit,  love,  joy,  peace,  long-suflfering,  gentleness, 
goodness,  faith,  meekness,  temperance;  and  live 
righteously,  soberly,  and  godly  in  the  world  ;  then 
we  may  be  assured  that  we  enjoy  the  witness  of 
Vol.  in.  52 


410  THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 

the  Spirit  of  God,  and  of  our  own  spirit,  that  we 
are  the  chihh-en  of  God. 

Try  yourselves  then,  professing  Christians,  by 
this  standard,  and  by  this  standard  alone.  All  ex- 
pectation of  some  special  and  distinct  revelation  of 
the  Spirit  to  tlic  mind,  apart  from  his  sanctifying 
influence  upon  them,  is  vvliolly  unauthorized.  It  is 
as  dangerous  as  it  is  unauthorized.  The  impulses 
of  the  imagination,  of  .luimal  sensibilities,  and  of 
heated  passions,  may  be  mistaken  for  the  impulses 
of  the  Spirit  of  God  ;  and  the  spirit  of  delusion, 
instead  of  the  Spirit  of  truth,  may  obtain  dominion 
over  you,  and  lead  you  to  false  hopes,  and  to  dan- 
gerous security.  But  ascertain  that  your  hearts 
are  the  subjects  of  his  holy  influence,  so  that,  in 
the  forcible  and  scriptural  language  of  our  church 
in  her  baptism;il  offices,  "  all  sinful  aflections  die 
in  you,  and  all  things  belonging  to  the  Spirit  live 
and  grow  ia  you  ;  and  that,  through  him,  you  are 
endued  with  heavenly  virtues,  and  are  daily  pro- 
ceeding in  all  virtue  and  godliness  of  living ;"  and 
you  may  be  assured  that  you  have  the  Holy  Spirit 
witnessing  with  your  spirit  that  you  are  children 
of  God. 

Commence  without  delay,  then,  this  important 
scrutiny.  By  the  power  of  the  Holy  Ghost,  in 
signs,  and  wonders,  and  mighty  works,  God  hath 
assured  to  you  a  revelation  of  his  will,  the  exceed- 
ing great  and  precious  promises  of  his  Gospel. 
By  the  gracious  covenant,  of  which  your  baptism 
was  the  seal,  he  conveyed  to  you  a  title  to  these 
promises.  You  were  made  children  and  heirs  of 
God,  and  joint-heirs  with  Christ,  of  immortal  glory. 
If  seduced,  by  the  false  but  alluring  objects  by 
which  the  world  tempts  you,  to  forget  your  high 


THE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT.  41 1 

vocation,  you  despise  or  neglect  these  privileges, 
and  fail  to  secure  them;  and,  instead  of  exercising 
repentance  and  faith,  mortifying  the  deeds  of  the 
body,  and  living  to  the  service  of  God,  you  live 
only  to  the  flesh,  to  fulfil  the  lusts  thereof — you 
will  incur  the  tremendous  guilt  of  contemning  the 
counsel  of  God  for  your  salvation;  instead  of  con- 
tinuing the  children  and  heirs  of  God,  you  will 
make  yourselves  the  children  and  heirs  of  him 
whose  works  ye  do  ;  and,  instead  of  being  joint- 
heirs  with  Christ  of  immortal  glory,  you  will  be 
(the  sentence  will  be  just,  the  condemnation  un- 
avoidable) heirs,  with  the  devil  and  his  angels,  of 
everlasting  wo. 

But  if,  fulfilling  the  conditions  of  the  Gospel- 
covenant,  dead  to  sin  and  living  unto  righteousness, 
born  of  God,  so  that  you  are  new  creatures  in 
Christ  Jesus,  you  can  indulge  the  humble  hope 
that  you  are  entitled  to  the  witness  of  the  Spirit 
testifying  with  your  own  hearts  that  you  are  entitled 
to  the  privileges  of  your  Christian  calling,  tran- 
scendently  exalted  and  happy  is  your  condition. 
God  is  your  reconciled  God  and  Father;  and  the 
affection  of  the  most  ardent  earthly  parent  is  not 
to  be  compared  with  the  love  which  your  heavenly 
Father  exercises  towards  you.  The  watchfulness 
and  solicitude  of  the  most  affectionate  earthly  pa- 
rent for  the  child  of  his  hopes,  afford  but  a  faint 
idea  of  the  watchful  solicitude  with  which  your 
heavenly  Father  regards  you,  his  children  in  Jesus 
Christ.  The  pleasures  and  glory  of  the  world  are 
not  worthy  of  a  comparison  with  those  transcendent 
blessings  to  which  you  are  heirs.  You  are  joint- 
heirs  with  the  Son  of  God,  and  he  hath  gone  befure 
to  tako  possession  of  the  promised  inheritance ; 


412  TftE  WITNESS  OF  THE  SPIRIT. 

and  you  shall  share  with  him  a  kingdom  that  shall 
never  be  moved,  a  crown  of  glory  that  fadeth  not 
away. 

What  love  and  gratitude  to  your  God  and  Sa- 
viour, and  what  holy  superiority  to  the  corrupting 
pleasures  of  the  world — what  inflexible  resistance 
to  its  temptations — what  patience  and  consolation 
under  its  adversities — what  joy  and  triumph  amid  all 
the  varied  scenes  of  life,  should  these  most  exalted 
privileges  inspire  in  your  souls !  They  were  con- 
ditionally conferred  in  your  baptism  ;  secure  them 
by  the  constant  exercise  of  that  holy  faith  which 
purifieth  the  heart,  which  leads  you  to  keep  all  the 
commandments  and  ordinances  of  God.  Take 
heed  lest,  seduced  by  the  temptations  of  the  world, 
you  fall  short  of  the  promised  glory.  Guided  and 
defended  by  the  Spirit  of  God,  persevere  unto  the 
end.  Greater  is  he  that  is  in  you,  than  he  that  is 
in  the  world.  The  Lord  of  hosts  is  with  you.  In 
the  time  of  trouble  he  will  be  your  refuge,  in  the 
hour  of  temptation  your  strength ;  even  through 
the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death  he  will  be  with 
you ;  and  you  shall  finally  reach  your  Father's 
home.  In  the  glories  of  his  presence  you  shall 
enjoy  your  inheritance  with  your  Saviour,  who  hath 
gone  before  to  prepare  it  for  you — a  happiness 
exalted  as  the  highest  heavens,  and  lasting  as  the 
ages  of  eternity. 


SERMON   XXXIV. 


THE  CHRISTIAN'S  VIEW  DIRECTED  TO  UNSEEN  THINGS. 


2  Corinthians  iv.  18, 
While  we  look  not  at  the  things  whicli  are  seen. 

Is  this  possible,  my  brethren  ?  Surrounded  by 
objects  attractive  to  every  sense  and  gratifying  to 
every  feeling,  can  we  so  far  abstract  ourselves  from 
them  as,  in  the  literal  meaning  of  the  expression, 
not  to  look  at  them,  not  to  regard  them  1  No, 
constituted  as  we  are,  the  things  which  are  seen 
being  not  only  the  sources  of  high  enjoyment,  but 
essential  to  our  comfort,  and  even  to  our  present 
existence,  must  unavoidably  engage  our  attention^ 
our  solicitude,  and  our  exertions. 

And  yet  this  precept  has  a  meaning  not  to  be 
evaded.  It  is  indeed  only  one  of  a  numerous 
class  of  precepts  which  inculcate  the  same  senti- 
ment. "  Lay  not  up  for  yourselves  treasures  upon 
earth,"  "  Ye  cannot  serve  God  and  mammon,"  were 
the  declarations  of  the  divine  Author  of  our  reli- 
gion. And  his  inspired  apostles  enjoin  us — ''  Love 
not  the  world,  nor  the  things  of  the  world."  "  The 
friendship  of  the  world  is  enmity  with  God."  "  If 
any  man  love  the  world,  the  love  of  the  Father  is 
not  in  him."  "  Set  your  affections  on  things  above, 
not  on  things  on  the  earth."  "  Seek  those  things 
which  are  above."  ''  Look  not  at  the  tilings  whicli 
are  seen." 


414  THE  christian's  view 

In  what  sense,  then,  we  arc  to  unrjerstand  these 
injunctions,  is  a  practical  inquiry  of  the  first  im- 
portance, the  determination  of  which  will  enable 
us  to  test  our  own  claim  to  the  character  of  real 
Cisristians,  and  of  course  our  title  to  the  favour  of 
God  and  the  happiness  of  heaven. 

Let  us  regard,  then,  the  Christian  as  looking  not 
at  the  things  which  are  seen,  in  reference  to 

His  principles, 

His  duties, 

His  trials, 

His  enjoyments. 

1.  The  principles  by  which  the  Christian  is  ani- 
mated are  not  derived  from  the  world,  and  render 
liim  independent  of  it. 

The  supreme  principle  which  animates  him,  is 
a  concern  for  his  salvation.  He  very  justly  reasons 
— "  What  will  it  profit  me,  if  I  should  gain  the 
whole  world  and  lose  my  own  soul  1  The  period 
of  my  existence  here  is  short — but  a  few  years, 
and  those  worldly  prospects  that  now  dazzle  and 
allure  will  vanish  in  the  darkness  of  the  grave. 
What  folly  then,  and  what  guilt  and  danger,  to 
pursue  the  objects  of  the  world,  which  I  must  leave 
— leave  at  a  moment,  perhaps,  when  I  most  confi- 
dently calculate  on  a  long  enjoyment  of  them — and 
neglect  a  provision  for  my  soul,  whose  existence  is 
prolonged  beyond  this  transitory  life,  in  a  state  of 
hapi)iness  or  misery  that  never  terminates  !" 

Influenced  by  these  considerations,  the  Christian 
makes  the  salvation  of  his  soul  his  supreme  con- 
cern ;  no  worldly  objects  are  permitted  to  come  in 
competition  with  it ;  they  are  all  rendered  subser- 
vient to  the  momentous  work  of  avoiding  that  eter- 


•BIRECTED  TO  UNSEEN  THINGS.  415 

saity  of  misery,  and  of  securing  that  eternity  of 
happiness  which  succeeds  the  present  transitory 
existence. 

How  different,  in  this  respect,  is  the  Christian 
from  the  man  of  the  world !  The  former  re«:ards 
the  numerous  objects  and  pursuits  thai  in  the  world 
solicit  and  engage  him,  as  in  no  respect  worthy  of 
desire  or  pursuit,  except  as  they  are  subordinate 
to  the  higher  concerns  of  that  immortal  existence 
for  which  he  is  destined,  and  as  they  aid  him  in 
attaining  that  eternal  felicity  which  is  there  prof- 
fered him.  No  object  which  the  world  can  present 
— 4ts  wealth,  however  abundant ;  its  honours,  how- 
ever splendid;  its  pleasures,  howevir  fascinating — 
appears  to  him  worthy  of  consideration,  when  put 
into  the  balance  against  the  interests  of  eternity. 
But  wealth,  and  honour,  and  pleasure  are  the  ob- 
jects that  engross  him  who  lives  only  for  the  world. 
His  thoughts,  his  feelings,  his  time,  his  exertions 
are  all  devoted. to  his  aggrandizement,  his  eleva- 
tion, his  enjoyment  here.  The  things  of  eternity 
are  forgotten — or,  if  they  obtrude  upon  his  thoughts, 
he  banishes  these  unwelcome  visitants  in  the  re- 
newed and  vigorous  pursuit  of  some  of  the  objects 
of  that  world  for  which  alone  lie  lives,  and  which 
alone  constitutes  the  source  of  his  enjoyment. 
He  lives  for  the  world  ;  and  when  he  is  summoned 
to  leave  it,  he  enters  on  eternity  un[)repared ;  he 
appears  before  the  tribunal  of  his  Maker  loaded 
with  his  transgressions ;  his  soul  is  the  seat  of  pas- 
sions that  render  him  unfit  for  heaven  ;  and  the 
sentence  that  dooms  him  to  misery,  in  banishment 
from  the  presence  of  his  God,  is  unavoidable  as 
well  as  just. 

The  Christian,,   on  the  contrary,  having  lived 


416  THE  christian's  view 

above  the  world,  by  making  all  its  concerns  and 
enjoyments  subservient  to  the  salvation  of  his  soul, 
finds  the  period  of  hia  departure  from  it  the  com- 
mencement of  a  state  of  felicity  as  pure  in  its  na- 
ture as  it  is  endless  in  its  duration. 

Another  principle,  under  the  influence  of  which 
the  Christian  lives  above  the  world,  is  a  supreme 
regard  to  the  authority  of  God. 

He  constantly  recognises  the  right  of  his  Maker, 
Preserver,  and  Benefactor  to  his  supreme  homage 
and  service.  By  the  laws  which  his  Almighty  So- 
vereign imposes,  and  not  by  the  maxims  and  the 
rules  of  an  erring  and  corrupt  world,  does  he  regu- 
late his  conduct.  What  does  the  law  of  that  Being 
prescribe,  on  whom,  as  my  Creator  and  Sovereign, 
I  am  dependent,  and  to  whom,  as  my  Judge,  I  must 
render  an  account t  What  will  he  approve!  what 
will  he  condemn  I  These  are  the  inquiries  which 
occupy  him,  and  by  which  he  tests  the  propriety  of 
every  measure,  and  ascertains  the  course  to  be 
pursued  in  every  emergency.  When  the  laws  whsch 
the  world  imposes,  the  maxims  which  it  prescribes, 
the  course  of  conduct  which  it  sanctions,  are  at 
variance  with  the  supreme  devotion  and  service 
which  are  due  to  the  Maker  and  Sovereign  of  the 
universe,  the  Christian  with  decision  and  with 
promptness  disregards  and  rejects  them.  His  is  a 
higher  principle  of  action  than  any  which  the  world 
can  furnish ;  not,  like  worldly  principles,  liable  to 
error  and  to  change,  and  often  corrupt  in  tiieir 
tendency  and  consequences;  but  a  regard  to  The 
authority  of  the  supreme  Lord  of  all,  pure,  cornet, 
and  unchangeable  as  his  own  in6?iite  and  etcaal 
nature. 

But  the  principle  which  especially  animates  the 


DIRECTED  TO  UNSEEN  THINCS.       417 

Clrristian,  and  under  the  influence  of  which  he  lives 
above  the  world,  is  the  principle  of  faith. 

Destitute  of  this  principle,  the  things  of  the  world, 
which  are  ever  presenting  such  numerous  attrac- 
tions, would  engross  his  attention.  It  is  faith  only 
which  diverts  his  view  from  the  objects  that  solicit 
and  gratify  his  senses,  to  those  spiritual  realities 
that  afford  substantial  enjoyment  to  the  soul.  On 
the  authority  of  the  word  of  God,  supported  as  it 
is  by  evidence  conclusive  to  the  understanding  and 
sanctioned  by  the  principles  of  nature,  tlie  Chris- 
tian receives  all  those  sublime  truths  that  proclaim 
the  perfections  and  the  laws  of  the  Maker  and 
■Ruler  of  the  universe — the  plan  of  redemption  for 
sinful  creatures,  through  the  merits  and  grace  of  a 
divine  Redeemer,  and  the  glories  of  immortality 
for  those  whose  destiny  was  the  dust  from  whence 
they  were  taken.  The  Christian  receives  all  the 
glorious  truths  which  God  has  revealed,  not  merely 
with  the  cold  assent  of  the  understanding,  but  with 
the  cordial  affiance  of  the  heart;  so  that  these 
truths  do  not  remain  only  the  subjects  of  specula- 
tion, but  are  brought  to  control  and  to  regulate 
every  power  of  the  mind,  every  feeling  of  the  souly 
and  every  action  of  the  life.  Emphatically,  as  the 
apostle  describes  him,  he  "lives  by  faith;"  and 
thus  perceiving,  in  the  perfections  of  the  adorafble 
Author  of  his  nature — in  the  wise  and  beneficent 
laws  which  the  Benefactor  of  the  -universe  has  pre- 
scribed— in  the  gracious  overtures  of  that  plan  of 
salvation  by  which,  through  the  iiherits  and  grace 
of  a  divine  Redeemer  and  a  divine  fSanctifier,  par- 
don and  holiness  are  assured  to  the  corrupt  and 
the  guilty — in  the  favour  and  protection  of  hioi 
who  is  wise  ia  counsel  and  mighty  in  power,  as  he 

Vol.  IIL.  53 


4J8  THE  eHRISTlAN's  VIEW 

is  good  in  all  that  he  doth — and  in  the  fulness  of 
glory  which,  at  the  resurrection  of  the  just,  con- 
summates the  felicity  of  the  righteous,  both  in  body 
and  soul — perceiving,  in  these  divine  and  spiritual 
realities  which  by  faith  he  contemplates,  objects 
infinitely  more  worthy  of  his  solicitude  and  pursuit 
than  any  of  those  which  gratify  only  the  senses, 
while  too  frequently  they  corrupt  the  heart,  the 
Christian  loves  not  the  things  of  the  world,  which 
are  seen ;  his  enlightened  vision,  penetrating  be- 
yond the  objects  of  time  and  sense,  lays  open  to 
his  enraptured  contemplation  the  glories  of  the 
spiritual  and  eternal  world  ;  elevated  above  this 
abode  of  doubt,  of  error,  of  sin,  and  of  sorrow,  his 
spirit  ymrsues  its  flight  to  the  regions  of  light  and 
glory,  where  it  enjoys,  in  God's  presence,  a  feli- 
city which  it  sought  in  vain  in  the  world.  It  is 
by  the  powerful  and  elevating  principle  of  faith 
that  the  Christian  looks  not  at  the  things  which 
are  seen :  a  citizen  of  heaven,  heaven  is  his  coun- 
try, his  home — though  for  a  while  he  is  an  exile  on 
the  earth. 

Thus,  then,  the  Christian  lives  above  the  world, 
as  it  respects  his  principles. 

2.  Let  us  regard  him  as  it  respects  his  duties. 

These  are  all  discharged  (even  those  which  arise 
from  his  connexion  with  the  world,  and  which  will 
cease  when  that  connexion  is  dissolved,)  with  fide- 
lity, with  a  fidelity  more  uniform  and  pure  than 
that  with  which  the  njere  man  of  the  world  per- 
forms the  same  duties,  because  necessary  to  his 
comfort  and  advancement  in  the  present  life.  They 
are  often  faithfully  discharged  by  those  who  ac- 
knowledge and  feel  the  influence  of  no  higher 


DIRECTED  to  UNSEEN  THINGS.  419 

principles  than  such  as  arise  from  the  dictates  of 
nature,  from  worldly  interest,  from  considerations 
of  personal  comfort  and  reputation,  of  domestic  en- 
joyment, and  of  social  order  and  prosperity.  But 
the  Christian  advances  further.  In  the  discharge 
of  every  relative  and  social  duty  he  disclaims  not 
the  influence  of  motives  of  a  temporal  nature ;  but 
he  controls  and  regulates  them  all  by  the  higher 
motives  of  a  regard  to  the  will  of  his  Almighty 
Maker  and  Sovereign,  and  to  the  salvation  of  his 
soul.  Under  the  paramount  sway  of  these  prin- 
ciples, his  fidelity  in  the  discharge  of  his  worldly 
duties  is  secured,  even  when  temporal  motives 
cease  to  operate,  or  when  indeed  they  have  raised 
an  opposing  current.  Acting  at  all  times  from 
those  elevated  motives  which,  arising  from  divine 
and  spiritual  things,  are  not  subject  to  the  changes 
and  impurities  from  which  no  sublunary  object  is 
exempt,  the  Christian  is  uniform,  prompt,  vigorous, 
and  decisive  in  the  discharge  of  his  duties,  direct- 
ing his  view  beyond  every  earthly  interest,  and 
ev6ry  temporal  consideration,  to  the  tribunal  of  his 
Maker,  where  he  is  to  be  judged,  and  to  the  glories 
of  eternity,  that  are  to  be  his  rewards. 

3.  But,  in  regard  to  the  trials  to  which  he  may 
be  called,  the  Christian  most  emphatically  lives 
above  the  world. 

He  makes  no  pretensions  indeed  to  that  apathy 
which  professes  to  be  unmoved  at  calamities  affect- 
ing those  worldly  interests  and  joys  which  are  en- 
twined around  our  hearts,  and  from  which  they 
cannot  be  sundered  without  pain.  Still  less  does 
he  boast  of  that  indifference  which  beholds,  in  the 
loss  of  worldly  comforts,  the  deprivation  merely  of 


^Q'  '^HE  christian's  TIEW 

objects  not  essential  to  our  real  dignity  or  enjoy- 
ment,   or  to  that  philosophical   composure  which 
submits  to  the  stroke  solely  from  the  considera- 
tion  that  it  is  inevitable  and  irremediable.     No: 
the  Christian  feels  as  a  raan.     Thourrh  far  from 
regarding  the  good   things  of  the   present  Vv'orld 
as   necesBarily   connected  with    his  virtue   or  his 
peace,  he  values  them  as  important  means  both  of 
usefulness    and    enjoyment,   and    therefore,  when 
lost,  to  be  regretted  ;  and  as  to  the  higher  joys  of 
relative  and  social  affection,  pure  in  their  origin, 
benignant  in  their  influence,  could  they  be  wrested 
from  him  without  a  pang,  it  would  prove  him  to  bo 
not  above,  but  below  the  finest  feelings  of  nature. 
He  knows  also  that  it  would  be  folly  to  fret  at 
calamities  not  to  be  averted,  but,  on  the  contrary,, 
aggravated    by    murmuring    and    repining.      The 
Christian-  iia  composed   and    submissive;    but  his 
composure    and    submission    do    not  subdue,   but 
(Control  that  sensibility  which   gives  animation  to 
virtue  and  sprightliness  to  joy,  and  which,  when 
chastened  by  Christian  faith,  turns  even  mourning 
into   rejoicing.     The  Christian   is   composed   and 
submissive,  because  his  trust  is  firmly  stayed  on 
that  Alirrigbty  Being  who  rules  over  all,  in   the 
whirlwind  and  the  storm,  as  well  as  in  the  sun- 
shins  and  the  calm ;  and  whoj  refreshing  him  here 
by  his  favour,  is  preparing  for  him  hereafter  the 
fulness  of'  bliss. 

Is  he  disappointed  in  some  favourite  expectation, 
from  which  he  anticipated  wealth  or  enjoyment? 
He  acknowledges  the  superintending  agency  of 
that  all-wise  and  all-merciful  Being,  who  often 
disappoints  our  expectations,  because  the  gratifi- 
satioa  of  them  would  be  injurious  to  our  virtue, 


DIRECTED  TO  UNSEEN  THINGS.        42-1 

and  not  promotive  of  our  real  happiness;  and  who 
hath  promised,  in  that  degree  and  at  that  period 
which  infinite  wisdom  and  goodness  deem  most 
fit,  to  those  who  seek  his  kingdom  and  the  righte- 
ousness thereof,  all  things  necessary  to  their  tem- 
poral comfort. 

Do  adverse  events,  in  rapid  succession,  over- 
whelm the  edifice  of  the  Christian's  prosperity^ 
Holding  fast  his  confidence  in  God,  the  tempest 
agitates  indeed,  but  does  not  prostrate  his  soul. 
In  the  midst  of  the  wreck  of  his  worldly  goods,  he 
can  cast  the  look  of  composure  and  of  trust  to  that 
Being  who  never  yet  afflicted  but  for  the  good  of 
his  creatures,  never  but  in  proportion  to  their  de- 
serts, and  never  without  opening  to  the  dejected 
spirit  those  consolations  of  his  favour,  those  hopes^ 
of  future  bliss,  which  the  world  could  neither 
give  nor  take  away.  The  Christian,  confiding  in 
the  promise  that  he  will  not  be  forsaken,  is  ani- 
mated to  those  exertions  that  may  be  necessary  to 
repair  the  ruin  that  has  overwhelmed  him.  There 
i«  an  unfailing  promise — "  Sorrow  may  endure  for 
a  night,  but  joy  cometh  in  the  morning."  Often 
the  morn  of  joy  succeeds,  even  here,  the  night  of 
sorrow  ;  but  assuredly,  a  morn  that  no  sorrow  cap 
cloud,  the  morn  of  an  eternal  day,  will  dawn,  and' 
bring  the  fulness  of  felicity  to  the  soul  of  th© 
Christian.  Light  is  sovi^n  for  the  righteous,  and 
joyful  gladness  for  the  upright  in  heart. 

Do  bereavements  still  more  severe  than  the  de- 
privation of  worldly  goods  pierce  with  anguish  the 
spirit  of  the  Christian  1  Are  his  friends  and  his 
relatives,  one  by  one,  wrested  from  him ;  and  is 
he  left  desolate  on  the  bleak  desert  of  the  world  I 
He  rises  above  it,  rises  in  holy  faith  to  that  celes-» 


42^  THE  ciiuistiain's  view 

tial  region  which  is  his  home,  the  home  to  which 
his  Christian  relations  and  friends  are  translated 
before  him,  and  where  he  will  again  meet  them  in 
the  presence  of  God,  never  to  experience  the  an- 
guish of  separation,  or  to  suffer  any  diminution  of 
the  fulness  of  their  bliss. 

The  Christian,  animated  by  faith  in  God,  lives 
above  the  trials  of  the  world. 

4.  Lastly.  Under  the  influence  of  the  same  holy 
principle,  lie  lives  above  its  enjoyments :  not  that 
he  childishly  disregards  them— not  that  he  proudly 
deems  them  jiinworthy  of  his  attention — not  that 
he  pharisaically  refrains  from  them,  as  necessarily 
incompatible  with  his  virtue.  Incompatible  with 
virtue  they  often  are,  through  excessive  indulgence, 
or  through  the  particular  temperament  of  the  in- 
dividual, or  the  circumstances  in  which  he  may  be 
placed.  But  to  refrain  from  the  good  things  of 
the  world,  when  they  do  not  abate  the  strength 
and  fervour  of  our  pious  principles,  or  relax  our 
virtuous  efforts,  would  be  an  ungrateful  contempt 
of  the  bounties  of  that  gracious  Being  who  hath 
conferred  them  upon  us,  that  in  the  submissive; 
and  thankful,  and  moderate  enjoyment  of  them, 
we  might  glorify  him,  the  beneficent  Giver. 

Still,  the  Christian,  surrounded  as  he  may  be 
by  worldly  comforts  and  enjoyments,  lives  above 
them.  He  bears  in  mind  that  he  is  the  heir  of 
joys  infinitely  more  exalted  in  their  nature,  and 
endless  in  their  duration ;  not  subject,  as  are  his 
present  joys,  to  the  changes  of  time,  to  the  imper- 
fections of  the  world,  to  the  stroke  of  calamity — 
but  fixed  in  God's  presence,  and  pure  and  exalted 
Rs  tiie  divine  glory.     In  nis  progre&s  to  these  joys, 


DIRECTED  TO  UNSEEN  THINCS.       42S 

the  Christian  thankfully  and  piously  indulges  in 
those  which  the  bounty  of  a  gracious  Providence 
here  bestows  upon  him  ;  but  the  imperfect  plea- 
sures that  solace  his  journey,  only  serve  to  increase 
his  ardour  for  the  full  delights  of  his  home ;  there 
his  heart  is  surely  fixed,  where  true  joys  are  to  be 
found ;  and  anticipating  there  the  consummation 
of  the  virtuous  pleasures  in  which  he  here  indulges, 
the  enjoyment  of  them  is  not  diminished  by  the 
fear  of  their  termination.  Oh  !  how  truly  are  the 
ways  of  religion  ways  of  pleasantness,  and  all  her 
paths  peace !  The  Christian  loves  not  the  world, 
and  yet  he  only  truly  enjoys  it. 

If  these  things  be  so,  how  great  is  the  mistake 
of  those  who  regard  a  religious  life  as  incom- 
patible with  their  enjoyment!  With  a  supreme 
devotion  to  the  things  of  the  world  a  religious  life 
is  indeed  incompatible ;  for  it  is  the  characteristic 
of  the  Christian,  that  he  looks  not  at  the  things 
which  are  seen.  Animated  by  a  supreme  concern 
for  the  salvation  of  his  soul,  and  regulated  by  an 
habitual  regard  to  the  authority  of  God,  and  by 
the  powerful  and  elevating  principle  of  fiiith,  he 
discharges  with  fidelity  all  the  duties  of  life ;  and 
while  he  derives  consolation  under  its  trials,  looks 
beyond  its  highest  pleasures  to  the  incorruptible 
and  unfading  joys  of  his  heavenly  iDheritance. 
Thus  living  above  the  world,  he  is  consoled  under 
its  trials,  and  animated,  in  the  experience  of  its 
virtuous  pleasures,  by  the  prospect  of  their  con- 
summation in  the  full  glories  of  heaven. 

Oh,  then,  Christians,  look  not  at  the  things  which 
are  seen.  By  pious  reading  and  meditation,  and 
above  all,  by  habitual  prayer  for  the  quickening  and 
sanctifying  inspirations  of  God's  Holy  Spirit,  che- 


424  THE  christian's  view,  (fee. 

rish  that  faith  which  Is  the  principle  of  the  spiritual 
life ;  daily,  hourly,  constantly  realize  that  you  are 
the  servants  of  God  and  the  heirs  of -heaven — the 
servants  of  God,  bound  in  all  things  to  please  him, 
who  will  make  all  things  work  together  for  your 
good— and  the  heirs  ©f  heaven,  not  to  be  seduced, 
by  the  imperfect  pleasures  which  surround  you, 
from  the  incessant  and  supreme  pursuits  of  those 
joys  that  are  reserved  for  you  in  your  heavenly 
inheritance.  For  this  purpose,  frequently  partici- 
pate of  that  holy  supper,  in  wliich  your  spiritual 
privileges  are  effectually  confirmed.  When  the 
world  assails  you  by  its  trials,  make  Him  your 
refuge  and  your  friend,  who,  as  a  Father,  loves 
and  pities  his  children,  loves  and  pities  those  who 
fear  him ;  and  bo  excited,  by  the  experience  of  the 
vanity  of  earthly  joys,  to  secure  those  which  flow, 
pure  and  satisfying,  from  the  city  of  the  living  God. 
And  when  the  world  surrounds  you  by  its  innocent 
enjoyments,  indulge  in  them,  but  in  moderation, 
remembering  that  you  have  a  better  and  an  endur- 
ing inheritance.  Be  constantly  on  your  guard,  that 
even  the  thankful  and  moderate  enjoyment  of  the 
things  which  are  seen,  does  not  withdraw  your  at- 
tention from  the  heavenly  objects  which  are  not 
seen,  but  which  are  eternal — tlie  only  satisfying 
joys  of  the  immortal  spirit;  in  anticipation,  its 
highest  delight  here— in  possession,  the  fulness  of 
ijs  blis§  hereafter. 


SERMON   XXXV. 


THE  NATURE  AND  IMPORTANCE  OF  SELF-DEVOTION  TO 

GOD. 


Romans  xii.  1, 

t  beseech  you  therefore,  brethren,  by  the  merfcies  of  God,  that  ye 
present  your  bodies  a  living  sacrifice,  holy,  acceptable  unto 
God,  which  is  your  reasonable  service. 

This  chapter  is,  with  admirable  propriety,  re- 
eited  by  the  church,  in  the  epistles  for  the  Sundays 
after  the  Epiphany :  for  having,  on  that  festival, 
celebrated  the  manifestation  of  her  Saviour  to  the 
Gentiles,  as  well  as  to  those  who  before  were  God's 
chosen  people,  it  is  her  design,  on  the  succeeding 
Sundays,  to  enforce  those  holy  graces  and  virtues 
which  Christ  in  his  Gospel  enjoins ;  and  with  this 
view  a  chapter  is  selected  which  cannot  be  sur- 
passed for  a  clear,  and  affecting,  and  impressive 
exhibition  of  Christian  morals.  I  shall  at  present 
confine  myself  to  the  important  and  interesting 
verse  which  I  have  recited  as  my  text,  which  will 
afford  sufficient  matter  for  a  single  discourse. 

The  first  part  of  the  Epistle  to  the  Romans— 
that  which  precedes  the  chapter  from  which  my 
text  is  taken — may  be  styled,  from  the  nature  of 
the  subjects  which  it  discusses,  the  speculative  or 
argumentative  part.  The  apostle  answers  the  ob- 
jections of  the  Jewish  converts  to  the  admission  of 
the  Gentiles  to  the  privileges  of  the  Cbristiqji 

Vol.  HI.  54 


426       THE  NATURE  AND  IMPORTANCE 

covenant,  and  shows  the  inefficacy  of  the  observ- 
ances of  the  Jewish  law,  considered  as  the  merito- 
rious ground  of  salvation.     In  a  masterly  strain  of 
argument  he  proves,  that  as  both  Jews  and  G.entiles 
have  "  sinned,  and  come  short  of  the  glory  of  God,'* 
they  can  be  "justified,"  not  by  the  "  deeds  of  the 
law,"  by  which  is  the  "knowledge"  of  sin,  and  not  the 
pardon  of  it,  and  which  pronounces  the  sentence, 
"  The  soul  that  sinneth,  it  shall  die ;"  but  only  by 
that  "  redemption  which  is  in  Christ  Jesus,  whom 
God   hath   set  forth  to  be  a  propitiation  through 
faith  in  his  blood,  to  declare  his  righteousness  for 
the  remission  of  sins  that  are  past,  through  the 
forbearance  of  God."     He  proves  that,  in  the  eter- 
nal purpose  of  God,  both  Jews  and  Gentiles  are 
predestinated,   not  individually  and   absolutely  to 
everlasting  life,  but  generally  and  conditionally  to 
the  blessings  of  this  covenant  of  mercy  in  the  pre- 
sent life ;  there  "  being  no  difference  between  the 
Jew  and  the  Greek  ;  for  the  same  Lord  over  all  is 
ni^h  unto  all  who  call  upon  him ;  and  all  that  call 
upon  him  shall  be  saved." 

Having  thus  unfolded  the  nature  and  the  extent 
of  the  covenant  of  mercy  in  Jesus  Christ,  he  pro- 
ceeds, in  the  latter  part  of  the  epistle,  to  enforce 
those  practical  graces  and  virtues  which  constitute 
the  perfection  of  our  nature,  and  to  which  we  are 
especir.l!y  excited  by  the  mercy  of  God  in  the  re- 
demption. To  this  latter  part  of  the  epistle,  con- 
taining this  admirable  summary  of  evangelical  duty, 
my  text  is  the  introduction  ;  and  it  is  an  introduc- 
tion worthy  of  the  sublime  exhortation  which  fol- 
lows, in  which  the  eloquent  apostle  exhibits  a  most 
perspicuous  and  interesting  display  of  the  whole 
aifcle  of  Christian  virtues.    "  I  beseech  vou  there- 


OF  SELF-DEVOTION  TO  GOD-  427 

fore,  brethren,  by  the  mercies  of  GoH,  that  ye  pre- 
sent your  bodies  a  living  sacrifice,  holy,  acceptable 
unto  God,  which  is  your  reasonable  service." 

In  order  to  open  to  you  the  full  force  iind  mean- 
ing of  this  important  passage,  I  shall  consider, 

I  The  duty  enjoined — "  the  presenting  of  our 
bodies  a  living  sacrifice  :" 

II.  The  exalted  characteristics  of  this  sacrifice; 
that  it  is  "  a  living  sacrifice,"  "  holy,"  "  acceptable 
unto  God,"  and  our  "  reasonable  service  :"  and, 

III.  Lastly.  The  motives  to  this  duty,  contained 
in  the  affecting  address  of  the  apostle  :  "  I  beseech 
you  therefore,  brethren,  by  the  mercies  of  God." 

I  am  to  explain, 

I.  The  duty  enjoined  in  the  text — "  the  present- 
ing of  our  bodies  a  living  sacrifice  unto  God." 

The  comparisons  are  various  under  which  the 
inspired  writers  represent  to  us  the  duties  of  the 
Christian  life  Sometimes  they  are  set  forth  under 
the  similitude  of  a  race,  in  which  all  our  faculties 
are  to  be  occupied  in  contending  for  the  prize  of 
our  high  calling  in  Christ  Jesus.  Sometimes  they 
are  exhibited  under  the  similitude  of  a  combat,  in 
which,  in  order  to  overcome  the  enemies  who  would 
wrest  from  us  the  crown  of  eternal  life,  we  must 
"  put  on  the  whole  armour  of  God,  the  helmet  of 
salvation,  the  sword  of  the  Spirit,  the  breastplate 
of  righteousness;  our  feet  being  shod  with  the  pre- 
paration of  the  Gospel  of  peace."  And  in  my  text, 
Christian  duty  is  displayed  under  the  significant 
emblem  of  a  "  sacrifice."  We  are  to  present  our 
"  bodies  a  living  sacrifice."  Sacrifice  being  a  ma- 
terial transaction,  in  order  to  preserve  the  con- 
sistency of  the  figure,  the  "  body"  is  here  put  for 


428       THE  NATURE  AND  IMPORTANCE 

the  whole  man :  we  are  to  present  our  bodies — 
the  meaning  evidently  is,  we  are  to  present  our- 
selves "  a  living  sacrifice." 

It  is  thus  the  intention  of  the  apostle  to  excite 
us  to  present  ourselves — our  whole  persons,  our 
souls  as  well  as  our  bodies — a  sacrifice  unto  God. 
And  this  duty  implies, 

1.  That  we  devote  ourselves  supremely  to  God  ; 

2.  That  we  thankfully  acknowledge  his  gracious 
authority  over  us ; 

3.  That  we  renounce  and  mortify  all  the  sinful 
passions  of  our  nature  ;  and, 

4.  Lastly.  That  all  these  acts  be  performed  in 
reliance  on  the  merits  and  efficacy  of  that  "  great 
sacrifice,"  once  offered  for  the  sins  of  the  world. 

The  presenting  of  ourselves  a  "  sacrifice  unto 
God"  implies, 

1.  That  we  devote  ourselves  supremely  to  him. 

It  would  be  foreign  tu  iht;  subject,  for   me  to 
enter  into  any  explanation  of  the  uiigin  or  nature 
of  the  rite  of  sacrifice.     Reason  would  never  sug- 
gest the  offering  of  an  animal  as  a  sacrifice  for  am. 
The  rite  of  sacrifice  was  instituted  by  God  himself, 
as  the  means  of  propitiating  his  oflfended  justice ; 
and  it  pointed  significantly  to  that  one  great  sacri- 
fice, by  which,  in  the  inscrutable  determination  of 
the  divine  counsels,  everlasting  peace  was  to  be 
effected  between  God  and  man.     Of  every  species 
of  sacrifice  it  was  a  characteristic,  that  the  thing 
offered  was  separated  from  all  common  purposes, 
and  solemnly  devoted  to  God ;  it  became  his  pro- 
perty, and  his  alone.  How  important  and  extensive, 
then,  the  duty  implied  in  the  injunction  to  "  present 
ourselves  a  sacrifice  unto  God  !"     We  are  to  sur- 
render ourselves  wholly  to  him,  as  our  only  Lord 


OP  SET.F-DEVOTTON  TO  GOD.  429 

and  Master.  We  are  to  be  separated  from  all  pur- 
suits and  from  all  enjoyments  that  interfere  with 
the  supreme  allegiance  due  to  him.  The  world, 
and  the  things  of  the  world,  are  never  to  be  re- 
garded when  they  come  in  competition  with  the 
sacred  demands  of  his  law.  From  this  surrender 
of  ourselves  to  the  service  of  God,  no  faculty  or 
affection  of  our  souls  is  to  be  exempt ;  they  must 
all  be  laid  on  the  altar,  as  an  offering  to  him  whose 
sovereign,  holy,  just,  and  reasonable  requisition  it 
is — "  Give  me  thy  heart."  Our  understandings 
mdst  be  devoted  to  him ;  so  that,  (from  the  words 
of  the  church  in  one  of  her  collects,)  "  by  his  in- 
spiration, we  may  think  those  things  that  are  good." 
Our  wills  and  affections  must  be  so  controlled  and 
directed,  that  (still  to  use  the  expressive  language 
of  the  church)  "  we  may  love  the  things  that  God 
commandeth,  and  follow  after  that  which  he  doth 
promise."  All  our  appetites  and  propensities  must 
be  so  reduced  under  the  dominion  of  grace,  that 
(still  using  the  language  of  the  liturgy)  "  our  flesh 
being  subdued  to  the  Spirit,  we  may  always  obey 
the  divine  motions  in  righteousness  and  true  holi- 
ness." 

In  fine,  a  supreme  sense  of  our  obligations  to 
God  must  so  animate  and  direct  our  whole  con- 
duct, that  it  may  be  said  of  us,  in  the  emphatic 
language  of  the  apostle,  "  whether  we  eat  or  drink, 
or  whatsoever  we  do,  we  do  all  to  the  glory  of 
God ;"  that  is,  aiming  at  his  favour  and  regulated 
by  his  law. 

If  this,  brethren,  is  not  our  character  and  state, 
the  duty  enjoined  by  the  apostle,  of  presenting 
ourselves  a  sacrifice  to  God,  is  yet  to  be  per- 
formed. 


4S0        THE  NATURE  AND  IMPORTANCE 

2.  This  solemn  devotion  of  ourselves  as  a  sacri- 
fice unto  God,  also  implies  a  thankful  acknowledg- 
raent  of  his  power  and  goodness. 

It  was  one  of  the  important  objects  of  sacrifice, 
to  testify  that  the  person  who  offered  it,  humbly 
and  thankfully  acknowledged  the  merciful  and  gra- 
cious dominion  of  the  Creator  of  the  universe.  A 
lively  sense  of  obligation,  therefore,  to  the  power 
and  goodness  of  God,  is  a  principal  constituent  of 
that  spiritual  sacrifice  which  we  are  directed  to 
ofter  to  him. 

We  are  to  present  ourselves  to  God,  as  the  crea- 
tures of  his  power,  the  children  of  his  bounty,  the 
subjects  of  his  redeeming  grace.  We  are  humbly 
and  thankfully  to  adore  him  as  the  Framer  of  our 
bodies  and  the  Father  of  our  spirits;  the  Author  of 
all  our  mercies,  and  our  reconciled  Father  and  God 
in  Christ  Jesus.  We  are  gratefully  to  acknow- 
ledge, that,  for  every  enjoyment  which  we  possess, 
and  every  hope  which  we  cherish,  we  depend  upon 
him,  the  Giver  of  all  good  ;  and  we  are  to  resolve 
to  glorify  this  our  Almighty  Benefactor  and  Father 
with  our  bodies  and  our  spirits,  that  are  his.  Thus 
shall  we  fulfil  the  high  import  of  the  injunction  of 
the  apostle,  to  "  present  ourselves  a  sacrifice  to 
God." 

3.  In  this  duty  is  also  implied  the  renunciation 
of  our  sinful  passions. 

In  some  of  the  sacrifices  of  the  Jewish  law,  "  the 
offals  of  the  beasts  slain  were  burnt  without  the 
camp;"  they  were  not  suffered  to  degrade  and  de- 
file the  hallowed  offering  made  to  God.  This  cir- 
cumstance teaches  us,  that  in  presenting  ourselves 
a  sacrifice  to  God,  we  are  to  separate  from  the 
offering  every  unholy  passion.  The  Being  to  whom 


OF  SELF-DEVOTION  TO  GOD.  431 

we  devote  ourselves  is  infinitely  holy,  and  he  can- 
not look  on  sin  but  with  abhorrence.  If  the  offer- 
ing we  make  of  ourselves  be  polluted  by  inordinate 
and  unholy  passions,  it  will  be  an  abomination  unto 
him ;  and  his  language  to  us  wdl  be,  what  it  was 
to  the  sensual  and  corrupt  Jews  of  old — "Bring 
no  more  vain  oblations."  The  Being  to  whom  we 
devote  ourselves,  infinitely  good  in  himself,  de- 
lighteth  in  doing  good  to  all  his  creatures  ;  and 
the  devotion  of  our  most  pure  and  ardent  affec- 
tions to  his  service,  will  be  but  a  feeble  tribute  to 
him  who  gives  us  richly  all  things  to  enjoy — in 
whom  we  live,  and  move,  and  have  our  being — 
who  is,  in  Christ  Jesus,  reconciling  us  unto  him- 
self, and  making  us  heirs  of  everlasting  life. 

4.  Lastly.  All  these  acts  must  be  performed  in 
reliance  on  the  merits  and  efficacy  of  that  "  great 
sacrifice,"  once  offered  for  the  sins  of  the  world. 

"  Jesus  Christ,  by  the  offering  of  himself,  once 
offered,  hath  perfected  for  ever  them  that  are  sanc- 
tified." He  was  that  "  Lamb  slain  from  the  foun- 
dation of  the  world,"  from  whom  every  other  sa- 
crifice derived  all  its  significance  and  value,  and 
without  the  divine  efficacy  of  which  it  would  have 
been  impossible  that  "  the  blood  of  bulls  and  of 
goats  should  take  away  sin." 

Through  the  merits  of  this  great  sacrifice,  then^ 
will  the  offering  which  we  make  of  ourselves  be 
rendered  acceptable  to  God.  Our  best  actions^ 
our  most  exalted  virtues,  will  not  stand  the  scru-,, 
tiny  of  his  justice  and  holiness.  Universal  and 
entire  as  is  the  surrender  of  ourselves  to  God 
which  the  Christian  sacrifice  exacts,  exalted  and 
difficult  as  are  the  duties  implied  in  it,  it  is  only 


4'32  THE  NATURE  AND  IMPORTANCE 

through  Christ,  who  strengtheneth  us,  that  we  shall 
be  able  thus  to  present  ourselves  to  God. 

This  sacrifice,  then,  considered  in  itself,  would 
be  unavailing — and  rested  on  as  a  ground  of  merit, 
would  be  highly  insulting  to  the  majesty  of  our 
Almighty  Sovereign.  But,  presented  in  the  name, 
and  urged  by  the  intercession  of  our  divine  Re- 
deemer and  gracious  High  Priest,  it  will  be  a  "  holy 
sacrifice,  and  acceptable  to  God." 

The  nature  of  the  Christian  sacrifice  being  thus 
explained,  I  am  led  to  the  second  division  of  my 
discourse,  in  which  I  am  to  lay  before  you, 

II.  The  exalted  characteristics  of  this  sacrifice ; 
it  is  a  "  living'''  sacrifice — it  is  holy — it  is  accept- 
able  unto  God — and  it  is  a  reasonable  service. 

It  is  a  living  sacrifice. 

The  sacrifices  of  the  Jewish  law  required  the 
death  of  the  victim.  But  the  Gospel  sacrifice  pro- 
motes the  purity,  the  strength,  the  everlasting  life 
of  our  natures :  all  its  exactions  advance  our  best 
and  eternal  interests.  The  Christian,  presenting 
himself  a  sacrifice  unto  God,  engages  to  glorify  his 
Lord  and  Master  by  the  most  lively  homage  of  his 
heart,  by  the  most  active  and  devoted  obedience  of 
his  life.  Employing,  while  he  sojourns  in  this  state 
of  probation,  all  his  powers,  all  his  afiections,  all 
his  exertions,  in  the  service  of  his  Almighty  Maker, 
in  the  discharge,  of  those  pious,  relative,  and  social 
duties,  which  his  Sovereign  and  Judge,  to  whom 
he  is  10  render  an  account,  prescribes ;  and  offer- 
ing, when  he  is  advanced  to  the  sacred  courts  of 
the  church  triumphant,  the  everlasting  tribute  of 
praise ;  the  Christian  lives,  in  time  and  in  eternity, 
to  his  God.    His  sacrifice  is  a  "  living'''  sacrifice. 


OF  SELF-DEVOTION  TO  GOD.  4^3 

It  is  also  a  "  holy"  sacrifice. 

Unlike  the  sacrifices  of  the  law,  which  derived 
all  their  sanctity  from  their  divine  institution,  the 
Christian  sacrifice  is  holy  in  its  nature,  in  its  effects, 
and  in  the  means  by  which  it  is  performed.  It  is  a 
solemn  and  entire  renunciation  of  the  baneful  do- 
minion of  sin ;  it  engages  us  to  the  practice  of  every 
virtue ;  and  thus  leads  us  to  become  holy,  as  the 
God  to  whom  we  devote  ourselves  is  holy :  and 
this  sacrifice  is  commenced  and  completed  in  the 
strength  of  that  Divine  Spirit  who  is  the  everlast- 
ing fountain  of  holiness. 

This  sacrifice  is  also  acceptable  unto  God. 

It  is  acceptable  to  God,  because  it  leads  us  to 
renounce  those  evil  passions  and  pursuits  which 
insult  his  authority,  contemn  his  justice,  defy  his 
power,  and  abuse  his  mercy;  and  because  it  excites 
us  to  cultivate  those  graces  and  virtues  that  con- 
form us  to  his  image,  and  that  testify  that  we  are 
deeply  affected  with  a  sense  of  the  infinite  obliga- 
tions that  bind  us  to  him.  When,  through  faith  in 
the  merits  of  his  eternal  Son,  and  relying  on  the 
efficacious  aids  of  his  grace,  assured  and  pledged 
to  us  by  the  ministry  and  in  the  ordinances  of  his 
church,  we  present  unto  God  the  homage  of  pure 
and  upright  hearts,  and  the  grateful  obedience  of 
our  lives,  we  offer  unto  him  a  sacrifice  more  ac- 
ceptable than  all  the  costly  oblations  that  were 
poured  forth  on  the  altar  of  the  Jewish  sanctuary. 
We  have  no  longer  cause  to  inquire,  in  the  laoguage 
of  doubt  and  anxiety,  "  Wherewithal  shall  we  come 
before  the  Lord,  and  bow  ourselves  before  the  most 
high  God  \  Shall  we  come  before  him  with  burnt- 
ofterings,  and  calves  of  a  year  old  1  Will  the  Lord 
be  pleased  with  thousands  of  rams,  or  ten  thou- 

VoL.  Ill,  55 


434  THE  NATURE  AND  I3IP0RTANCE 

sands  of  rivers  of  oil  ]  Shall  we  give  our  first-born 
for  our  transgression,  the  fruit  of  the  body  for  the 
sin  of  the  soul  l  He  hath  showed  thee,  O  man, 
what  is  good  ;  and  what  doth  the  Lord  require  of 
thee,  but  to  do  justly,  and  to  love  mercy,  and  to 
walk  humbly  with  thy  God  '!" 

And  it  is  a  further  commendation  of  this  sacrifice 
that  it  is  a  reasonable  service. 

It  is  indeed  with  great  propriety  styled  a  sermcc; 
it  is  claimed  by  our  almighty  Creator,  our  bounti- 
ful Benefactor,  our  merciful  Redeemer,  our  most 
compassionate  Father  and  Friend.    Every  principle 
of  t)ur  nature,  every  rule  of  jusiice,  every  feeling  of 
gratitude  impels  us  to  serve  him,  who,  as  the  great- 
est and  best  of  Beings,  receives  the  homage  of  all 
the  works  that  he  has  made.     It  is  therefore  not 
only  a  service,  but  a  rcasonabh  service.     The  du- 
ties which  it  enjoins  ore  all  of  high  and  obvious 
obligation  ;  they  all  tend  to  promote  the  peace  and 
the  perfection  of  our  natures.     Piety  to  God,  jus- 
tice and  charity  to  man,  temperance  and  purity  in 
the    government   of   ourselves — these    are    duties 
which,  in  all  their  various  and  important  exercises, 
reason  cordially  and  fully  approves ;  they  are  the 
law  of  our  being,  a  transcript  of  that  eternal  law 
which  constitutes  the  harmony  of  the  universe,  and 
in  which  all  intelligent  creatures  find  their  glory 
and  their  happiness.     The  Christian,  therefore,  in 
solemnly  devoting  himself  to  the  practice  of  these 
exalted  duties,  in  renouncing  the  tyranny  of  sinful 
passion,  so  destructive  to  his  peace,  so  degrading 
and  corrupting,  engages  in  a  reasonable  service. 

I  have  thus  exhibited  to  you  the  nature  of  the 
Christian  sacrifice,  and  its  exalted  characteristics. 

It  embraces  the  supreme  devotion  of  all  our 


OF  SELF-DEVOTION  TO  GOD.  435 

powers  and  affections  to  the  service  of  our  Almighty 
Lord  and  Sovereign.  It  enjoins  us  thankfully  to 
adore  that  infinite  power  and  goodness  which  sus- 
tain and  comfort  us,  and  to  renounce  those  sensual 
passions  which  are  not  more  offensive  to  the  divine 
purity  than  degrading  to  ourselves.  It  teaches  us 
to  rely,  for  the  acceptance  of  this  supreme  and 
holy  oblation  of  ourselves,  on  the  merits  and  grace 
of  him  through  whom  alone  guilty  creatures  have 
access  to  the  throne  of  offended  justice.  This 
sacrifice,  therefore,  comprehends  the  whole  of  that 
religious  service  which  the  law  of  God  enjoins,  and 
which  reason  dictates  and  approves.  The  active 
and  animated  service  which  this  living  sacrifice 
requires,  will  constitute  our  everlasting  employ- 
ment and  happiness ;  purifying  our  nature,  and 
conforming  us  to  the  holy  image  of  God,  it  is  the 
most  acceptable  service  which  we  can  render  to 
him — a  service  not  more  enjoined  by  reason  thaa 
agreeable  to  every  good  principle  of  our  nature. 

Recommended,  then,  as  this  sacrifice  is  by  its 
exalted  qualities,  we  behold  in  them  motives  suffi- 
ciently strong  to  lead  us  to  present  ourselves  a 
sacrifice  to  God. 

But  this  duty  is  urged  by  other  considerations, 
that  make  the  most  |)owerful  appeal  to  every  ge- 
nerous and  amiable  feeling. 

Til.  For  "  the  mercies  of  God"  are  the  motives 
which  the  apostle  urges,  in  my  text,  as  the  most 
constraining  and  powerful  principles  of  Christian 
duty. 

He  does  not  display  the  awful  majesty  and  power 
of  Jehovah,  which  demand  the  reverence  of  his 
'Creatures;  he  does  not  make  bare  that  arm  of 


436       THE  NATURE  AND  IMPORTANCE 

justice  which  will  not  spare  the  transgressor ;  the 
holy  apostle  does  not  assume  the  severe  tone  of 
command,  or  the  more  appalling  language  of  de- 
nunciation ;  he  exhibits  the  mercies  of  God  as  the 
motive  to  present  ourselves  a  sacrifice  to  him,  Und 
he  therefore  uses  the  mild  language  of  persuasion, 
as  more  congenial  with  the  theme  on  which  he 
intends  to  dwell. 

"  I  beseech  you,  brethren,  by  the  mercies  of  God." 

By  the  mercies  of  God,  your  Creator j  who  raised, 
from  an  inert  and  shapeless  mass,  those  bodies 
which  now  erect  look  towards  heaven,  and  breathed 
into  them  the  breath  of  life ;  who  endowed  your 
souls  with  those  spiritual  and  immortal  powers 
which  distinguish  you  from  the  brutes  that  perish, 
and  which  constitute  your  perfection,  dignity,  and 
happiness — by  the  mercies  of  him  in  whom  you 
live,  and  move,  and  have  your  being,  I  beseech  you, 
present  yourselves  a  living  sacrifice,  holy,  accept- 
able unto  him. 

By  the  mercies  of  God,  your  Benefactor  and 
Preserver,  who  continually  sustains  you,  who  pro- 
tects you  in  danger,  succours  you  in  misfortune, 
and  crowns  you  with  the  rich  blessings  of  life — by 
the  mercies  of  him  who  giveth  you  richly  all  things 
to  enjoy,  I  beseech  you,  present  yourselves  a  sacri- 
fice unto  him. 

By  the  mercies  of  God,  your  Redeemer,  who  hath 
revealed  to  you,  in  the  Gospel  of  his  Son,  his  eter- 
nal Being  and  perfections,  every  truth  connected 
with  your  duty  and  your  happiness ;  who  spared 
when  we  deserved  punishment,  and  in  his  wrath 
remembered  mercy;  who,  in  your  lost  estate,  laid 
help  on  one  that  is  mighty,  and  by  his  eternal  Son 
wrought  your  deliverance  from  condemnation  and 


OF  SELF-DEVOTION  TO  GOD.  437 

death — by  the  mercies  of  him  who  is  the  sure  and 
everlasting  refuge  of  the  penitent,  the  Author  of 
life  and  glory  to  all  who  believe  in  him,  I  beseech 
you,  present  yourselves  a  sacrifice  to  him. 

You  are  not  called,  brethren,  to  an  unreasonable 
duty,  to  a  severe  and  degrading  service ;  for  it  is 
the  honourable,  the  dignified  service  of  him  who  is 
the  source  of  goodness  as  well  as  of  power,  and 
who  is  infinitely  exalted  above  the  most  perfect  of 
the  creatures  he  has  made.  The  service  of  that 
beneficent  God  in  whom  is  the  fulness  of  felicity, 
must  be  productive  of  the  highest  pleasures  which 
our  nature  can  receive  or  enjoy  :  it  confers  here,  a 
peace  which  passeth  understanding — and  it  con- 
ducts us  hereafter,  to  those  immortal  glories  which 
eye  hath  not  seen,  which  ear  hath  not  heard,  and 
of  which  the  heart  of  man  cannot  conceive.  If  we 
neglect  a  service  thus  honourable  and  exalted,  thus 
rich  in  present  peace  and  in  immortal  felicity,  and 
wilfully  refuse  to  engage  in  it,  though  urged  by  the 
mercies  of  our  Maker  and  Preserver,  our  Redeemer 
and  God,  what  can  we  look  for  but  that  indignation 
which  Jehovah  hath  denounced  asfainst  his  adver- 
sariesl  Even  that  mercy  which  we  have  insulted 
and  spurned  will  pour  upon  us  the  vials  of  wrath. 
And  when  mercy,  that  so  long  pleaded  for  our  par- 
don, is  roused  to  vengeance,  who  can  stand  1 

The  mercies,  brethren,  of  God,  our  Creator,  our 
Preserver,  our  everlasting  Redeemer,  now  invite 
us.  Bound  to  him  by  infinite  obligations,  as  our 
"  reasonable  service,"  to  him  let  us  devote  our- 
selves "  a  living  sacrifice."  Through  thy  grace,  O 
God,  may  it  be  a  "  holy"  sacrifice,  and  through  thy 
mercy  in  Jesus  Christ  thy  Son,  an  "  acceptable" 
one  unto  thee. 


SERMON   XXXVl. 


THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST. 


Proverbs  iv.  18. 

The  p'ath  of  the  just  is  as  the  shining  light,  that  shineth  more  and 
more  unto  the  perfect  day. 

Though  feeble  and  faint  the  first  dawn  of  light 
which  glimmers  through  the  midst  of  darkness  and 
announces  the  approach  of  the  glorious  luminary 
of  the  heavens,  it  shineth  more  and  more  until  it 
bursts  forth  in  the  full  splendour  of  perfect  day. 

Behold,  brethren,  the  comparison  by  which  the 
text  denotes  the  life  of  the  just  man.  Faint  and 
feeble  the  beginnings  of  his  spiritual  life;  but  it  in- 
creases in  strength  and  splendour,  it  shines  more 
and  more  with  the  Christian  graces,  until,  in  the 
final  state  of  bliss,  every  cloud  which  in  this  im- 
perfect .life  shaded  it  being  dispelled,  it  steadily 
sends  forth  the  eternal  lustre  of  celestial  glory. 

The  life  of  the  righteous  should  be  progressive 
in  goodness.  Daily  advancing  in  all  holy  virtues 
and  graces,  his  love  to  his  God,  his  trust  in  his 
Saviour,  his  pious  and  devout  affections  should 
constantly  become  more  sincere  and  strong,  and 
his  active  sympathy  and  benevolence  should  burn 
with  a  brighter  and  brighter  flame.  The  great 
work  of  crucifying  the  flesh  with  its  corrupt  affec- 
tions, and  of  overcoming  the  world,  its  sinful  temp- 
tations and  pleasures,  should  be  unceasingly  pur 


THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST.  439 

sued.  Thus  all  the  divine,  social,  and  personal 
virtues  would  be  displayed  in  his  life  and  conver- 
sation, with  increasing  brightness.  "  The  path  of 
the  just  is  as  the  shining  light,  that  shineth  more 
and  more  unto  the  perfect  day" 

The  service,  then,  to  which  Christians  are  called, 
is  not  an  inactive  service  ;  it  demands  more  than 
feeble,  occasional,  relaxed  exertions ;  it  is  not  sa- 
tisfied with  present  attainments,  nor  does  it  permit 
us  to  be  stationary  in  our  course ;  enjoining  per- 
severing, increasing  efforts,  it  calls  continually  for 
brighter  displays  of  those  pious,  humble,  holy,  and 
benevolent  virtues  which  shed  around  their  pos- 
sessor a  resplendent. and  attractive  lustre,  and  pre- 
pare him  for  shining  with  immortal  glory  in  the 
courts  of  the  celestial  Zion. 

The  duty  of  advancing  in  the  holy  graces  and 
virtues  of  the  Christian  service  is  demanded  by  the 
nature  of  the  service  itself;  it  is  enforced  by  the 
command  of  God ;  it  is  urged  by  the  dictates  of 
gratitude  and  interest. 

The  duty  of  advancing  in  all  the  graces  and 
virtues  of  the  Christian  life  is  demanded  by  the 
nature  of  the  service. 

This  service  consists  in  a  constant  warfare  with 
all  the  sinful  passions  and  temptations  of  our  fallen 
nature ;  requiring  the  old  man,  whicii  is  corrupt 
after  the  flesh,  to  be  put  ofi',  and  the  new  man  to 
be  put  on,  which,  after  God,  is  created  in  righteous- 
ness and  true  holiness.  The  flesh,  with  its  affec- 
tions and  lusts,  is  to  be  crucified,  and  we  are  to  be 
renewed  in  the  spirit  of  our  minds,  and  to  be  fruitful 
in  every  good  work. 

The  Christian  service  setting  before  us  this  hiffh 
standard,  admits  of  no  relaxation  of  effort,     The 


440  THE  PATH  OP  THE  JUST. 

holiness  at  which  we  arc  to  aim  is  so  pure  and 
exalted,  that  our  advances  to  it  must  necessarily 
be  gradual  and  progressive  ;  and  no  man  will  be 
entirely  freed  from  the  dominion  of  sin,  and  com- 
pletely established  in  purity  and  virtue,  until  the 
period  when  this  corruptible  shall  put  on  incorrup- 
tion,  and  mortality  be  swallowed  up  of  life. 

Consider  then,   Christians,   how  numerous  and 
exalted  the  graces  which  should  adorn  your  cha- 
racter— how  sincere  and   ardent  should  be  your 
love  and  gratitude  towards  your  God  and  Saviour 
— how  profound  your  humility,  your  submission, 
and  your  penitence — how  active  your  benevolence., 
Ijow  lively  your  sympathy  and  your  compassion — ■ 
how  unaffected  your  meekness,  your  forbearance, 
your  gentleness,  and  kindness — how  inflexible  your 
integrity,  fidelity,   and  justice — how  uniform  and 
rigid   your    sobriety,   your   temperance,   your  go- 
vernment of  your  passions — how  complete  your 
superiority  to  the  sinful  and  transitory  pleasures 
of  the  world — how  fervent  your  desires  after  the 
perfection   and   bliss  of  heaven ! — consider  these 
numerous  virtues  and  graces,  which  you  are  not 
merely  to  possess,  but  in  which  you  are  to  excel, 
and  surely   you   will   not  pretend  that  you   have 
already  attained,  and  that  you  have  no  further  ad- 
vances to  make  in  the  Christian  course.    The  view 
of  the   exalted    nature    of  the   Christian   service, 
humbling  all  our  aspiring  pretensions,  will  impress 
on   us  the  truth,    that,    however  great  our  pious 
attainments,  however  bright  our  graces  and  virtues, 
they  are  still  far  below  the  standard  at  which  we 
are  required  to  aim,  are  still  faint  and  feeble  in 
their  lustre,  and  that  they  must  shine  more  and 
more  unto  the  perfect  day. 


THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST.  441 

The  duty  of  progressive  religion,  of  advancing 
in  all  the  attainments  of  the  Christian  service,  thus 
demanded  by  the  nature  of  the  service  itself,  is 
enforced  by  the  command  of  God. 

He  has  fixed  no  human,  no  finite  standard  of 
virtue,  at  which  we  may  rest,  and  boast,  with  con- 
fident presumption,  that  we  have  already  attained. 
He  commands  us  to  "  bo  perfect,  as  he  himself  is 
perfect;"  to  ''  be  holy,  as  the  Lord  our  God  vvho 
hath  called  us  is  holy."  The  perfection,  then,  at 
which  he  has  enjoined  us  to  aim,  forbids  all  inter- 
mission of  our  eftbrts,  and  that  confidence  in  our 
own  attainments  which  cherishes  indolence  and 
inactivity.  God,  in  calling  us  to  aspire  after  his 
own  infinite  perfection,  has  plainly  and  forcibly 
impressed  on  us  the  necessity  of  increasinL'"  dili- 
gence and  zeal,  and  of  constant  progress  in  holi- 
ness and  virtue.  The  standard  at  which  we  are  to 
aim  being  infinite,  there  can  be  no  point,  in  our 
advances  to  it,  at  which  we  can  stop.  If  we  relax 
our  effbrts  in  the  spiritual  life — if  we  arc  contented 
with  any  present  acquisitions,  however  exalted — if 
we  do  not  forget  the  things  which  are  behind,  and 
counting  nothing  done  while  any  thing  remains  to 
be  done,  press  forward  with  holy  zeal  to  higher 
attainments,  to  brighter  and  more  exalted  virtues — 
we  shall  violate  the  express  injunctions  of  that 
Almighty  Sovereign  who  has  required  of  us  con- 
tinual advancement  in  holiness,  not  only  to  assimi- 
late us  to  his  own  divine  image,  and  to  fit  us  for 
the  enjoyment  of  his  holy  presence,  but  as  the  test 
of  our  fidelity,  our  sincerity  and  ardour  in  his 
service. 

But  the  duty  of  advancing  in  the  attainments 
and  graces  of  the  Christian  life,  thus  enforced  by 

Vol..  HI.  56 


442  THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST. 

the  command  of  God,  is  urged  by  the  dictates  of 
gratitude. 

It  is  only  by  a  holy  life  that  we  can  glorify  our 
Almighty  Maker,  tiie  beneficent  Benefactor  who 
giveth  us  richly  all  things  to  enjoy;  it  is  only  by 
excelling  in  all  the  graces  and  virtues  of  the  Chris- 
tian life,  that  we  can  testify  our  gratitude  to  that 
Almighty  Deliverer  who  paid,  with  his  own  blood, 
the  price  of  our  ransom  from  sin  and  death  ;  and 
it  is  only  by  denying  ungodliness  and  worldly  lusts, 
and  living  righteously,  soberly,  and  godly  in  the 
w(»rhl,  that  we  can  answer  the  end  for  which  the 
eternal  Son  of  the  Father  came  into  the  world, 
which  was  tt>  redeem  us  from  all  iniquity,  and  to 
purify  us  unto  himself  a  peculiar  people,  zealous 
of  cfood  works. 

Your  advancement  in  holiness  and  virtue  is  there- 
fore, O  Christians,  the  test  of  your  gratitude  to  your 
God  and  Saviour.  In  proportion  as  you  excel  in 
all  holy  dispositions  and  virtues,  will  you  evidence 
the  sincerity  and  the  ardour  of  that  most  noble  and 
exalted  of  all  virtues,  gratitude  to  your  Maker  and 
Redeemer ;  and  if  you  consider  the  many  mercies 
that  thus  call  for  gratitude,  you  will  feel  the  force 
of  this  consideration  in  animating  your  progress  in 
the  service  of  your  God.  For  the  gift  of  a  rational 
and  immortal  nature,  which,  raising  you  far  above 
the  brute  creation,  assimilates  you  to  the  intelli- 
gences of  heaven,  and  even  to  God  himself,  you 
are  bound  to  praise  him  who  made  you  after  his 
own  image.  For  the  innumerable  enjoyments  of 
the  present  life,  and  for  the  brighter  hopes  of  future 
bliss,  you  are  called  to  praise  him  who  delighteth 
in  doing  good  to  his  creatures.  Infinitely  exalted 
are  the  spiritual  mercies  which  he  hath  conferred 


THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST.  443 

on  us.  His  only-begotten  and  well-beloved  Son  he 
gave  for  our  redemption.;  the  light  of  his  favour 
he  sheds  upon  us;  from  death  and  hell  he  hath 
ransomed  us  ;  the  transcendent  glories  of  heaven 
he  prepares  for  us.  If  we  are  ungrateful  for  these 
infinite  and  eternal  mercies  of  our  God,  we  must 
not  talk  of  our  gratitude,  or  boast  of  our  sensibi- 
lity. And  how  shall  we  display  the  grateful  feel- 
ings of  our  hearts  but  by  constant,  zealous  exertions 
in  his  service — by  devoting  ourselves,  with  unceas- 
ing ardour  and  fidelity,  to  his  honour  and  glory? 
No  attainments  will  be  valued,  no  exertions  counted 
great,  when  we  consider  how  vast  is  our  debt  of 
gratitude  to  our  Redeemer  and  God ;  we  shall 
praise  our  heavenly  Benefactor  with  increasing  ar- 
dour, while  we  have  our  breath — we  shall  serve 
our  gracious  God  and  Saviour  with  increasing  fide- 
lity, while  we  have  our  being.  Eternity,  O  our 
God,  will  take  up  the  work  of  praising  thee ;  and 
the  services  of  eternity,  augmenting  in  fervour  and 
in  strength,  will  be  inadequate  to  the  debt  of  love 
which  we  owe  thee. 

Our  continual  progress  in  holiness  and  virtue, 
the  test  of  gratitude  to  our  God  and  Saviour,  is 
also  enforced  by  the  dictates  of  interest. 

We  cannot  remain  stationary  in  our  course:  if 
the  dominion  of  divine  grace  in  our  hearts  does  not 
increase  in  strength  and  power,  sin  will  be  making 
insidious  but  successful  inroads  on  our  piety  and 
virtue.  Our  active  and  ardent  powers,  (such  is  the 
constitution  of  the  human  mind,)  will  atfvanee  either 
in  the  paths  of  virtue,  or  in  the  career  of  sin  and 
folly.  As  you  value,  therefore,  your  present  attain- 
ments, as  you  fear  relapsing  into  folly  and  sin, 
press  forwards  continually  with  more  vigorous  zeal 


444  THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST. 

in  the  service  of  your  God.  Constant  and  earnest 
endeavours  after  more  exalted  holiness  and  virtue 
are  your  only  security  for  the  possession  of  your 
present  acquirements,  your  only  safeguard  against 
the  assaults  of  temptation  and  the  insidious  arts  of 
that  adversary  who  seeks  for  a  moment  of  ease 
and  security  to  make  you  liis  prey. 

Our  spiritual  peace  and  joy  will  be  in  proportion 
to  our  advancement  in  the  ways  of  religion.     The 
more  lively  our   love   to  our  God,   and  the  more 
faithfully  we   endeavour   to   serve   him,  the   more 
shall  we  enjoy  the  refreshing  comforts  of  his  pre- 
sence.   The  more  ardent  and  sincere  our  gratitude 
to  the  Saviour,  and  the  more  faithfully  we  devote 
ourselves  to  him,  the  more  consoling  and  triuniphant 
will  be  our  affiance  on  his  merits.     The  more  we 
love  the  law  of  God,  the  greater  will  be  otir  peace: 
the  more  the  dominion  of  sin  is  subdued  in  our 
hearts,  the  greater  will  be  our  happiness  and  joy. 
In  proportion,  Christians,  to  the  brightness  of  your 
graces,  the  triumphs  of  your  faith,  and  the  sincerity 
of  your  obedience,  will  be.  your  rejoicing  in  that  God 
whose  secret  is  with  the  righteous.     As  your  path 
shines  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect  day,  the 
light    of  God's    countenance  will   shine    brighter 
upon  you,  until,  in  the  courts  of  the  celestial  Zion, 
it  encircles  you  with  unspeakable  glory.     In  that 
kingdom,  where   ono  star  differeth  from  another 
star  in  glory,  your  rewards  will  be  in  proportion  to 
your  attainments  in  virtue,  to  the  purity  and  strength 
of  your  Christian  graces.    Let  this  animating  con- 
sideration rouse  you  to  more  vigorous  zeal  in  the 
service  of  your  God.  What  more  powerful  motives 
can  possibly  be  presented  to  you  ^    While  the  me- 
rits of  your  blessed  Redeemer  render  your  obedi 


tKe  path  of  the  just.  445 

ence  acceptable  to  God,  and  his  grace  gives  you 
strength  for  the  highest  attainments,  you  have  the 
animating  promise,  that  every  advance  which  you 
make  in  holiness  and  virtue  shall  advance  your 
glory  and  bliss  hereafter.  Here  then  direct  every 
power  of  your  souls ;  here  then  stir  up  within  you 
a  holy  emulation.  Blest  indeed  the  lowest  ranks 
in  the  kingdom  of  heaven — more  blest  the  seats 
that  are  near  the  throne  of  the  divine  glory.  Aspire 
after  them,  O  Christians  !  The  brighter  the  virtues 
of  your  warfare,  the  brighter  the  crown  which  will 
reward  your  victory.  The  brighter  the  path  of 
duty  which  you  traverse  in  this  season  of  your 
probation,  the  brighter  the  blissful  and  eternal  day 
which  will  succeed  it. 

With  so  many  motives  to  urge  you,  labour  then 
to  advance  continually  in  the  graces  and  virtues  of 
the  Christian  service,  to  grow  in  grace,  and  in  the 
knowledge  of  your  Lord  and  Saviour  Jesus  Christ. 

Your  progress  in  the  Christian  life  will  depend 
on  your  exercise  of  devout  meditatioji — on  your 
attendance  on  the  public  ordinances  of  religion — 
on  your  cherishing  in  your  minds  the  divine  power 
oi  faith — and  on  private  prayer. 

Frequently  meditate  on  the  perfections  of  God, 
on  the  infinite  mercy  and  grace  of  his  eternal  Son, 
on  the  excellence  of  the  divine  service,  on  the  guilt 
and  misery  of  sin,  on  the  numerous  and  exalted 
rewards  of  piety  and  virtue.  Frequently  call  to 
mind  the  uncertainty  of  life  and  the  vanity  of  its 
joys,  the  certainty  of  death  and  the  eternity  which 
is  to  succeed  it,  the  torments  of  hell,  the  glories  of 
heaven.  Thus  frequently  and  seriously  meditate 
on  all  the  infinitely  momentous  truths  of  religion, 
^nd  their  importance  will  be  more  deeply  impressed 


44G  THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST. 

on  your  minds,  your  hearts  will  be  the  more  ear- 
nestly engaged  in  the  pursuit  of  them,  the  world 
will  have  less  sway  over  you ;  you  will  live  more 
for  eternity,  more  for  God ;  every  grace  and  virtue 
will  be  brightened  ;  your  path  will  shine  more  and 
more  unto  the  perfect  day. 

Devoutly  and  regularly  attend  on  all  the  insti- 
tutions and  ordinances  of  religion.  They  are  the 
channels  of  divine  mercy  and  grace.  Bring  to 
them  humble  and  penitent  hearts,  and  they  will 
unite  you  to  your  God ;  they  will  quicken  your 
zeal  and  ardour  in  his  service ;  they  will  arm  you 
against  the  temptations  of  the  world  ;  they  will 
shed  on  your  souls  those  divine  joys  which  will 
animate  you  in  the  service  of  your  God ;  they  will 
advance  you  in  all  the  graces  and  virtues  of  the 
Ciiristian  life,  leading  you  from  strength  to  strength, 
until  at  length  you  appear  before  the  Lord  of  hosts 
in  the  heavenly  Zion. 

As  the  quickening  principle  of  the  spiritual  life, 
labour  to  cherish  in  your  hearts  the  divine  power 
of  faith.  It  is  the  inspired  declaration — "The 
just  shall  live  by  faith."  In  proportion  to  the 
strength  of  this  principle  will  be  your  sincerity, 
your  zeal  and  ardour  in  the  Christian  life.  For  it 
is  •'  the  substance  of  things  hoped  for,  the  evidence 
of  things  not  seen  :"  it  brings  to  the  mind,  as  if 
they  were  seen  and  present,  spiritual  and  eternal 
truths.  The  more  lively  and  strong  your  belief 
that  God  is  your  Sovereign  and  Judge,  that  Jesus 
Christ  is  your  all-sufficient  Intercessor  and  Re- 
deemer, that  the  torments  of  hell  or  the  glories  of 
heaven  await  you  beyond  the  present  uncertain 
scene,  the  more  will  you  disregard  all  sublunary 
objects  when  compared  with  the  things  of  eternity, 


THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST.  447 

and  the  more  earnest  and  the  more  successful  will 
be  your  progress  in  the  great  work  of  your  sal- 
vation. 

But  ineffectual  will  be  all  your  efforts,  unless 
they  are  sanctified  and  quickened  by  frequent  and 
devout  prayer. 

It  is  "  prayer  which    opens    heaven,    and    lets 
down"  upon  the  soul  that  mercy  which  is  its  only 
solace,  that  grace  which  is  its  only  safeguard.    He 
who,  by  fervent  prayer,  lives,  if  I  may  so  spok,  in 
heaven,  will  displ  sy  on  earth  a  portion  of  its  purity, 
and  enjoy  on  earth  a  foretaste  of  its  glories.   Prayer 
is  the  soul  of  the  new  man  in  Christ  Jesus.     Des- 
titute  of  this   principle,    he   languishes   and  dies. 
"  Pray  without  ceasing,"  says  an  inspired  apostle; 
evidently  directing  us  not  only  to  stated  exercises 
of  devotion,  but  to  that  lively"  and  grateful  sense  of 
the  divine  presence,  that  constant  aspiration  after 
the  divine  favour,  those  secret  and  frequent  ejacu- 
lations of  supplication  and  praise,  in  which  consists 
the  spirit  of  prayer.     Pray  thus  without  ceasing; 
exalted  will  be  your  Christian  att.iinments,  exalted 
your  joys.     When  engaged  in  the  busy  scenes  of 
life,  lift  up  your  souls  to  God,  and  you  will  disarm 
the  world  of  its  temptations  and  snares.     When 
the  blessings  of  nature  and  the  bounties  of  Provi- 
dence gladden  your  hearts,  lift  up  those  hearts  to 
God;  briiihter  will  be  the  joy  irradiating  your  bo- 
soms.    When   sunk    in   the    shades  of  adversity, 
direct  the  prayer  of  humble  hope  to  him  who  is 
the  Protector  of  those  who  trust  in  him,  and  holy 
serenity  and  hope  shall  beam  upon  your  despond- 
ing spirits. 

Finally,  brethren,  in  your  course  to  the  heavenly 
Jerusalem,  let  prayer  be  your  guide  and  inseparable 


448  THE  PATH  OF  THE  JUST. 

companion,  and  your  path  shall  be  as  the  shining^ 
light,  shining  more  and  more  unto  the  perfect  day. 
The  path  of  the  just,  refreshed  by  the  lights  of 
God's  favour,  thus  terminates  in  everlasting  glory. 
But  the  way  of  the  wicked  is  darkness;  bright  and 
joyous  as  may  be  their  prospects  in  this  world,  the 
path  which  they  are  pursuing  leads  to  death,  and 
will  take  hold  on  hell.  Let  them  awake,  ere  they 
stumble  on  the  dark  mountains,  and  the  things 
that  belong  to  their  peace  be  for  ever  hidden  from, 
their  eyes. 


SERMON   XXXVIL 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS. 


St.  Matthew  xsvi  14- 

The  kiftgdom  of  heaven  is  as  a  man  travelling  into  a  far  country, 
who  called  his  own  servants,  and  delivered  unto  them  his 
goods. 

The  parabolic  mode  of  instruction  pursued  by 
our  blessed  Lord,  is  founded  in  nature.  It  is  diffi- 
cult to  convey  a  forcible  idea  of  intellectual  and 
moral  truths  but  by  the  aid  of  similitude ;  thus 
figuratively  represented,  they  appear  with  greater 
clearness  to  the  understanding,  and  more  forcibly 
interest  the  imagination  and  the  heart.  The  sym- 
bolical style,  therefore,  connected  with  the  consti- 
tution of  human  nature,  has  prevailed  among  man- 
kind in  every  age  and  country.  It  was,  however, 
particularly  prevalent  in  the  Eastern  nations,  where 
the  circumstances  of  climate,  of  the  face  of  the 
country,  and  of  the  state  of  society,  were  highly 
favourable  to  the  excitement  and  the  indulgence 
of  a  strong  and  lively  imagination. 

In  these  considerations  we  shall  find  a  cause  for 
the  figurative  mode  of  instruction  adopted  by  our 
Saviour.  But  he  had  other  reasons  for  the  em- 
ployment of  it.  The  symbolical  style,  though  aid- 
ing our  conception  of  religious  and  moral  truths — 
in  order  to  produce  this  efiect,  requiring  some  at- 
tention on  the  part  of  those  to  whom  it  is  addressed 

Vol.  III.  57 


450  THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS. 

— was  a  trial  of  the  docility  of  his  hearers ;  whe- 
ther "  seeing,  they  would  see,  and  hearing,  they 
would  hear,  and  would  understand  ;"  that  is,  whe- 
ther they  would  exercise  that  honest  and  patient 
attention  which  was  necessary  to  the  full  compre- 
hension of  the  truths  delivered,  or  would  wilfully 
close  their  ears  to  the  voice  of  instruction.  The 
mission  of  our  Saviour  also  was  to  a  "  disobedient 
and  gainsaying  people."  Their  glaring  errors  were 
to  be  corrected ;  their  gross  vices  were  to  be  re- 
proved. This  was  a  business  requiring  the  utmost 
delicacy  and  management,  lest  the  provocation  of 
resentment  should  lead  to  personal  insult,  or  should 
wholly  defeat  the  object  of  his  reproof — the  con- 
viction of  the  offenders.  It  was  therefore  a  dictate 
of  prudence  to  soften  the  severity  of  his  reproofs^ 
by  concealing  them  under  the  veil  of  similitude,  or 
allegory. 

For  all  these  reasons  we  find  our  blessed  Lord 
so  often  conveying  his  instructions  in  the  form  of 
parables. 

My  text  js  the  commencement  of  a  parable,  in 
which  our  Saviour  represents  the  dispensation  of 
his  spiritual  blessings  to  mankind,  the  improvement 
which  they  make  of  them,  and  the  awards  which 
he  will  finally  assign  them,  under  the  similitude  of 
a  man  who,  travelling  into  a  far  country,  intrusts 
his  servants  with  a  particular  proportion  of  his 
property;  and  on  his  return,  requires  from  them 
an  account  of  the  improvement  which  they  have 
made  of  their  trust,  and  gives  them  their  sentence 
according  to  their  deserts. 

In  the  verse  preceding  the  text,  our  Saviour  had 
delivered  the  caution — "  Watch,  for  ye  know  nei- 
ther the  day  nor  the  hour  when  the  Son  of  man 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OP  THE  TALENTS.  451 

Cometh."  He  then  enforces  this  caution  by  the 
parable  of  which  my  text  is  the  commencement: — 
"  The  kingdom  of  heaven,"  or,  omitting  these 
words,  which  are  not  in  the  original — "  He,"  that 
is,  the  Son  of  man,  whose  coming  was  spoken  of 
in  the  preceding  verse — "  He  is  as  a  man  travelling 
into  a  far  country,  who  called  his  own  servants  and 
delivered  unto  them  his  goods."  Jesus  Christ,  the 
Lord  of  all  things,  head  of  all  things  to  his  church, 
has  ascended  into  heaven  ;  but  thence,  from  the 
throne  of  dominion,  he  distributes  his  gifts  and 
graces  to  his  disciples  on  earth.  "  And  unto  one 
he  gave  five  talents,  to  another  two,  and  to  another 
one;  to  every  man  according  to  his  several  ability; 
and  straightway  took  his  journey."  Jesus  Christ, 
the  Lord  of  his  disciples,  does  not  distribute  to 
them  equally  his  gifts  and  graces ;  according  to 
their  several  ability,  to  their  natural  capacity  of 
improving  them,  or  to  the  stations  of  importance  or 
difficulty  in  which  they  may  be  placed,  does  he  pro- 
portion his  spiritual  favours. 

The  improvement  which  these  servants  made  of 
the  trust  committed  to  them,  is  recorded  in  the 
ensuing  verses  : — "  Then  he  that  had  received  the 
five  talents,  went  and  traded  with  the  same,  and 
made  them  other  five  talents.  And  likewise  he 
that  had  received  two,  he  also  gained  other  two. 
But  he  that  had  received  one,  went  and  digged  in 
ihe  earth,  and  hid  his  lord's  money."  The  sincere 
disciples  of  Christ,  mindful  of  their  obligations  to 
their  Lord  and  Master,  and  of  the  account  which 
they  are  to  render  to  him,  will  zealously  and  faith- 
fully improve  the  spiritual  trust  v/hich  they  have 
received  ;  while  the  negligent  and  slothful  Chris- 
tian, hke  the  faithless  servant  m  the  parable,  hides 


452  THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS. 

his  talent  in  the  earth — neglects  to  improve  the 
grace  which  he  has  received,  to  his  own  salvation 
and  to  the  honour  of  his  Master.  But  a  day  of 
account  is  coming.  "  After  a  long  time,  the  lord 
of  those  servants  cometh,  and  reckoneth  with  them. 
And  so  he  that  had  received  five  talents,  came  and 
brought  other  five  talents,  saying,  Lord,  thou  de- 
liveredst  unto  me  five  talents:  behold,  I  have  gained 
besides  them  five  talents  more."  Happy  the  Chris- 
tian who,  like  this  faithful  servant,  can  thus  address 
his  Saviour  and  Judge ;  '  Lord,  the  five  talents  of 
grace  thou  hast  given  me,  I  have  improved,  and 
they  are  become  five  talents  more !'  Happy  the 
Christian  who  thus  improves  his  spiritual  privi- 
leges !  for,  like  the  faithful  servant  in  the  parable, 
*'  his  Lord  will  say  unto  him,  Wei!  done,  good  and 
faithful  servant ;  thou  hast  been  faitliful  over  a  few 
things,  I  will  make  thee  ruler  over  many  things : 
enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy  Lord."  Nor  will  the 
improvement  of  inferior  talents  go  without  its  re- 
ward. For  "  he  also  that  had  received  two  talents 
came,  and  said.  Lord,  thou  deliveredst  unto  me 
two  talents :  behold,  1  have  gained  two  other  ta- 
lents besides  them.  His  lord  said  unto  him.  Well 
done,  good  and  faithful  servant ;  thou  hast  been 
faithful  over  a  few  things,  I  will  make  thee  ruler 
over  many  things :  enter  thou  into  the  joy  of  thy 
lord." 

The  unprofitable  servant,  who,  instead  of  im- 
proving the  talent  committed  to  him,  had  hid  it  in 
the  earth,  now  comes  to  render  his  account.  "  Then 
he  which  had  received  the  one  talent  came,  and 
said.  Lord,  I  knew  thee  that  thou  art  a  hard  man, 
reaping  where  thou  hast  not  sown,  and  gathering 
where  thou  hast  not  strewed;  and  I  was  afraid, 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OP  THE  TALENTS.  45tJ 

and  went  and  hid  thy  talent  in  the  earth  :  lo,  there 
thou  hast  that  is  thine."  Our  indignation  is  roused 
at  this  insolent  plea,  by  which  this  slothful  servant 
excuses  his  shameful  neglect  to  improve  the  trust 
committed  to  him.  But  liis  plea  is  that  whereby 
professing  Christians  sometimes  seek  to  extenuate 
or  to  defend  their  neglect  of  their  Master's  service, 
urging  that  it  is  unreasonable  and  severe.  Mark 
the  reprimand  which  the  servant  in  the  parable 
receives  from  his  lord.  "  His  lord  answered  and 
said  unto  him,  Thou  wicked  and  slothful  servant, 
thou  knewest  that  I  reap  where  I  sowed  not,  and 
gather  where  I  have  not  strewed  ;  thou  oughtest 
therefore  to  have  put  my  money  to  the  exchangers, 
and  then  at  my  coming  I  should  have  received 
mine  own  with  usury."  '  Thou  wicked  and  sloth- 
ful servant,  admitting  thy  representation  of  me  as 
a  hard  master,  reaping  where  I  have  not  sowed, 
and  gathering  where  I  have  not  strewed,  to  be 
just,  it  should  have  led  thee  to  be  the  more  diligent 
in  improving  a  trust,  of  which  thou  didst  expect  I 
would  exact  so  severe  an  account.  Thou  shouldst 
have  put  my  money  to  the  exchangers,  that,  at  my 
coming,  I  might  have  received  mine  own  "  with 
usury," '  with  improvement,  with  lawful  increase ; 
this  being  the  idea  annexed  to  the  word  "  usury" 
in  the  sacred  writings.  And  in  like  manner,  thou, 
wicked  and  slothful  Christian,  who  dost  not  im- 
prove the  grace  and  spiritual  privileges  intrusted 
to  thee  by  thy  Lord,  because  thou  dost  consider 
him  as  a  hard  Master,  thy  very  excuse  proves  thy 
folly  as  well  as  thy  guilt.  For  if  thy  Lord  and 
Saviour  "  reaps  where  he  does  not  sow,  and  ga- 
thers where  he  has  not  strewed,"  if  he  rigorously 
exacts  that  to  which  he  has  no  just  claim,  surely 


454  THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS. 

thou  mayest  expect  he  will  require  from  thee  that 
to  which  he  has  a  just  claim — an  improvement  of 
the  trust  committed  to  thee,  a  return  for  the  privi- 
leges he  has  conferred  upon  thee.  The  just  sen- 
tence pronounced  upon  the  faithless  servant,  will 
be  pronounced  upon  thee.  "  Take  therefore  the 
talent  from  him,  and  give  it  unto  him  which  hath 
ten  talents."  The  spiritual  blessings  which  we  fail 
10  improve,  shall  be  taken  from  us,  and  given  unto 
them  who  will  improve  these  blessings  to  their 
own  good,  and  to  the  honour  and  glory  of  their 
gracious  Benefactor.  "  For  unto  every  one  that 
hath,"  that  improves  the  talents  or  the  grace  be- 
stowed upon  him,  "  shall  be  given,"  more  abundant 
grace  shall  be  conferred;  "  but  from  him  that  hath 
not,"  that  fails  to  improve  his  spiritual  privileges, 
"  shall  be  taken  away  even  that  which  he  hath," 
the  blessings  which  he  neglects  shall  be  taken 
away.  Alas !  deplorable  is  the  condition  to  which 
the  unprofitable  receivers  of  the  grace  of  God  are 
consigned  !  "  And  cast  ye  the  unprofitable  servant 
into  outer  darkness :  there  shall  be  weeping  and 
gnashing  of  teeth." 

Brethren,  this  parable  concerns  us  all ;  the  in- 
structions which  it  contains  are  deeply  important. 

God  gives  grace  sufficient  to  all  men  to  enable 
them  to  serve  him ;  this  grace,  however,  is  not  given 
equally  to  all,  but  in  different  degrees,  according 
to  their  respective  capacities  and  circumstances. 

He  requires  of  all  men  an  improvement  of  the 
grace  given,  in  proportion  to  the  measure  which 
they  have  received. 

The  pretext  for  negligence  in  his  service,  that 
he  exacts  what  men  are  unable  to  perform,  is  un- 
founded and  unreasonable. 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS.  455 

An  account  must  be  rendered  by  all  men  to  God, 
of  the  improvement  which  they  have  made  of  the 
talents  and  the  grace  given  them. 

God  virill  finally  assign  to  men  various  degrees 
of  happiness  or  misery,  according  to  their  respec- 
tive deserts. 

These  are  the  particulars  which  embrace  all  the 
instruction  contained  in  the  text,  and  on  which  I 
now  proceed  to  remark. 

1.  God  gives  grace  sufficient  to  all  men  to  enable 
them  to  serve  him  ;  this  grace,  however,  is  not  given 
equally  to  all,  but  in  different  degrees,  according 
to  their  respective  capacities  and  circumstances. 

The  Parent  of  all  men,  he  wishes  "  all  men  to 
be  saved,  and  to  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the 
truth."  Gracious  and  merciful  to  his  offendingr 
creatures,  he  is  "  not  willing  that  any  should  perish, 
but  that  all  should  come  to  repentance."  But  so 
dependent  is  human  nature  on  God,  the  Sovereign 
of  his  creatures  and  the  Author  of  every  good  and 
perfect  gift ;  so  great  is  the  weakness  and  corrup- 
tion of  nature,  that  we  are  "  not  sufficient  of  our- 
selves to  think  any  thing  as  of  ourselves,  but  our 
sufficiency  is  of  God."  "  It  is  God  who  worketh  in 
us  both  to  will  and  to  do  of  his  good  pleasure."  If 
therefore  he  "  will  have  all  men  to  be  saved,  and 
to  come  to  the  knowledge  of  the  truth ;"  if  he  is 
"  not  willing  that  any  should  perish,  but  that  all 
should  come  to  repentance ;"  he  certainly  does  not 
withhold  from  them  the  grace  which,  if  they  dili- 
gently improve  it,  will  "  lead  them  into  trutii,  and 
bring  them  to  repentance.  If  grace  sufficient  to 
work  out  their  salvation  be  not  conferred  upon  all 
men,  then  God  is  a  respecter  of  persons ;  then  he 


456  THE  DiSTRIBtTION  OF  THE  TALENTS. 

wishes  all  men  to  be  saved,  and  yet  withholds  the 
grace  necessary  to  enable  them  to  work  out  their 
salvation ;  then  he  wishes  all  men  to  come  to  the 
knowledge  of  the  truth,  and  yet  confers  not  the 
grace  which  only  can  lead  them  to  it ;  then  he  is 
not  willing  that  any  should  perish,  but  that  all 
should  come  to  repentance,  and  yet  he  does  not 
bestow  on  all  that  grace,  without  which  repentance 
is  impossible,  and  their  destruction  inevitable;  then 
he  is  indeed  "  a  hard  Master,  reaping  Where  he  has 
not  sown,  and  gathering  where  he  has  not  strewed," 
exacting?  of  all  men  to  serve  him  under  the  awful 
sanctions  of  everlasting  happiness  or  everlasting 
misery,  and  yet  not  conferring  on  all  the  grace 
without  which  it  is  impossible  to  serve  him. — 
These  conclusions,  so  contrary  to  Scripture,  so 
abhorrent  to  every  dictate  of  goodness  and  justice, 
and  so  dishonourable  to  God,  the  gracious  Father 
of  his  creatures,  will  result  from  the  denial  of  the 
truth,  that  God  gives  to  all  men  grace  sufficient  to 
enable  them  to  serve  him.  We  reject,  then,  every 
doctrine  that  is  contrary  to  this  truth,  every  doc- 
trine which  would  confine  that  grace  which  bring- 
eth  salvation  to  all  men,  to  a  portion  of  mankind 
who  exclusively  partake  of  this  most  precious  gift 
of  heaven.  God  is  a  righteous  Master,  who  deli- 
vers to  all  his  servants  (and  all  men  are  the  ser- 
vants of  this  their  gracious  Master  in  heaven)  his 
goods — his  heavenly  grace — -that  treasure  intrusted 
to  us  as  his  stewards,  and  which  "  we  are  to  occu- 
py," to  improve,  until  he  come  and  demand  an 
account  of  our  stewardsiiip.  "  Of  his  fulness  we 
have  all  received  ;  and  grace  for  grace  ;  according 
to  the  measure  of  the  gift  of  Christ." 

But  though  this  grace  be  given  in  a  siifficient,  it 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS.  457 

is  not  given  in  an  equal  degree  to  all  men.  The 
standard  by  which  it  is  apportioned  is,  their  ability 
to  improve  it.  For  thus,  in  the  parable,  the  lord 
of  the  servants  "  gave  unto  one  five  talents,  to 
another  two,  and  to  another  one ;  to  every  man 
according  to  his  several  ability^  There  are  vari- 
ous ranks  of  beings  in  the  creation  of  God ;  and 
among  these  ranks  there  are  various  grades  in 
their  respective  capacities.  The  unnumbered  hosts 
of  angelic  spirits  that  surround  the  throne  of  the 
Eternal,  are  not  equal  in  their  perfections  and 
power.  There  is  the  seraph,  vvho  worships  near 
the  throne;  and  there  is  the  ministering  spirit,  who 
waits  at  humbler  distance  to  do  the  pleasure  of  the 
great  Creator.  Man,  though  little  lower  than  the 
angels,  is  still  inferior  to  them  ;  and  among  men 
there  is  the  greatest  variety  in  their  natural  powers. 
This  distinction  of  rank  and  capacity  among  the 
intelligent  creatures  of  God,  serves  to  make  mani- 
fest his  works,  "  to  show  forth  his  wisdom,  his 
power,  and  his  glory."  And  that  he  thus  gives  to 
all  severally  as  he  pleaseth,  is  no  infringement  on 
his  goodness  or  his  justice,  provided  he  gives  to  all 
a  capacity  for  happiness,  and  the  means  of  attain- 
ing it;  and  finally  deals  with  them  according  to  the 
improvement  which  they  make  of  the  trust  reposed 
in  them.  Thus,  to  difl?erent  men  he  assigns  differ- 
ent capacities  of  serving  him ;  and  according  to 
this  standard  does  he  dispense  to  them  his  grace, 
"  to  each  man  according  to  his  several  ability,^' 
But, 

2.  He  requires  of  all  men  an  improvement  of  the 
grace  given,  in  proportion  to  the  measure  which 
they  have  received. 

Vol.  III.  58 


.458  THE  DISl illlJU TION  OF  TiiE  TALENTS. 

This  is  the  second  observation  which  I  deduced 
from  the  parable. 

God,  in  justice,  can  chiim  the  improvement  of 
the  talents  and  the  grace  bestowed  upon  iis ;  and 
this  improvement  is  necessary  lo  nutke  these  gii'ts 
conducive  to  his  glory,  to  the  good  of  others,  and 
to  our  own  salvation.  As  all  our  natural  powers 
are  derived  from  God,  he  may  justly  demand  that 
we  employ  them  in  bis  service.  Tiie  free  gift  of 
his  grace  in  Christ  Jesus  he  ijas  bestowed. upon  us, 
and  he  may  justly  demand  tliat  this  inestimable 
gift  should  not  remain  unimproved.  We  have  all 
a  work  assigned  us,  for  whicii  the  grace  of  God  is 
superadded  to  our  natural  powers — 'the  promotion 
of  the  glory  of  God,  the  happiness  of  others,  and 
our  own  salvation.  These  are  the  important  ends 
for  which  the  Judge  of  all  requires  from  us  th(i 
improvement  of  our  natural  powers  and  advantages, 
and  of  his  heavenly  grace.  But  he  does  not  demand 
the  same  improvement  from  all.  From  him  that 
had  received  only  two  talents,  he  requires  that  two 
more  be  added  to  them ;  while  he  that  had  received 
five  talents,  is  required  to  increase  them  to  five  ta- 
lents more ;  and  the  merciful  Judge  of  all  would 
have  accepted  him  that  had  received  but  the  one 
talent,  had  he  only  added  to  it  one  talent  more. 
Thus,  then,  our  improvement  is  expected  to  be  in 
proportion  to  the  natural  powers  which  we  have 
received,  to  the  advantages  which  we  enjoy,  and 
the  measure  of  spiritual  grace  vouchsafed  us.  You 
will  therefore  perceive  the  truth  of  the  third  obser- 
vation deducible  fiom  the  parable,  viz.  that, 

3.  The  pretext  for  negligence  in  the  service  of 
God,  that  he  exacts  what  men  are  unable  to  per- 
form, is  unfounded  and  unreasonable. 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS.  459 

The  unprofitable  servniit  in  the  parable  excused 
his  neglect  to  improve  the  talent  committed  to  him, 
by  the  plea,  "  Lord,  thoy  art  a  hard  master,  reap- 
ing where  thou  hast  not  sown,  and  gathering  where 
thou  hast  not  strewed."  Does  the  Christian  hide 
his  talent  in  the  earth,  and  excuse  his  sloth  and 
negligence  by  the  same  plea!  It  is  a  plea  that 
will  utterly  fail  him.  God,  willing  that  all  men 
should  be  saved,  has  given  to  all  men,  through  his 
mercy  in  Jesus  Christ,  the  grace  to  serve  him  ac- 
ceptably. He  has  eminently  crowned  us  with  his 
spiritual  favours.  He  has  given  us  the  knowledge 
of  that  Saviour,  through  whose  blood  we  may  re- 
ceive the  remission  of  our  sins.  Ho  has  given  us 
his  holy  word,  to  be  a  light  unto  our  feet  and  a 
lamp  unto  our  path.  He  instructs,  he  warns,  he 
encourages,  he  comforts  us  by  the  ministry  of  that 
holy  church  into  which  we  are  called,  and  by  which 
we  are  to  be  prepared  for  final  happiness  in  his 
heavenly  kingdom.  Incorporated  into  this  church 
by  baptism,  and  ratifying  our  vows,  we  have  re- 
ceived of  the  fulness  of  its  divine  Head  that  mea- 
sure of  grace  suited  to  our  abilities  and  our  sta- 
tion, by  which  we  are  enabled  to  work  out  our 
salvation.  And  dost  thou,  O  Christian  !  hide  in 
the  earth  the  precious  talent  thus  intrusted  to 
theel  Art  thou  unprofitable  under  all  these  means 
of  grace'?  or,  art  thou  worse  than  unprofitable 
—dost  thou  turn  the  grace  of  God  into  lascivi- 
ousness,  and  disregarding  the  spiritual  blessings 
bestowed  upon  thee,  continue  in  thy  s'msl  And 
is  it  thy  excuse  for  this  sloth,  this  negligence,  this 
obstinate  continuance  in  sin,  that  thy  Lord  is  "a 
hard  Master,  reaping  where  he  has  not  sown,  and 
gathering  wdiere   he   ha§,  not  strewed?"    Blush, 


460  THE  DISTllIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS. 

O  Christian  !  at  this  unfounded  plea  ;  blush  at  thy 
ungrateful  return  to  that  gracious  Master,  who  has 
distinguished  thee  with  the  means  of  grace,  and 
with  the  hope  of  glory.  Slothful  and  unprofitable 
Christian  !  tremble  at  thy  guilt.     For, 

4.  An  account  must  be  rendered  by  all  men  to 
God,  of  the  improvement  which  they  have  made  of 
the  talents  and  the  grace  given  them. 

This  was'lhe  fourth  observation  founded  on  the 
parable. 

God  hath  not  bestowed  upon  us  high  natural 
endowments  and  the  inestimable  treasures  of  his 
grace,  and  allowed  us  to  neglect  them.     He  re- 
quires us  to  improve  them  according  to  the  mea- 
sure which  we  have  received.    If  we  have  received 
five  talents,  he  requires   us  to  add  to  them  five 
talents  more ;  if  we  have  received  two  talents,  he 
requires  us  to  add  to  them  two  talents  more ;  and 
even  the  one  talent  is  to  be  returned  to  him  with 
increase.     Nor  are  these  requisitions  of  which  he 
will  fail  to  require  from  us  an  account.     "  The 
Lord  of  these  servants  cometh  and  reckoneth  with 
them."     "  God  hath  appointed  a  day  in  which  he 
will  judge  the  world  in  righteousness."     Then  we 
shall  have  to  render  him  an  account  of  the  improve- 
ment which  we  have  made  of  the  talents  bestowed 
upon  us ;— we  shall  have  to  render  an  account  to 
him,  who  will  come  in  the  glory  of  his  Father  and 
his  holy  angels ;  before  the  brightnes  of  whose 
presence  the  sun  will  be  darkened,  and  the  moon 
withdraw  her  light;  before  the  greatness  of  whose 
majesty  the  heavens  will  depart,  and  the  earth  be 
removed;  and  before  the  terrors  of  whose  justice 
the  nations  of  the  world  shall  quake,  and  devils  io 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS.  461 

the  dominions  of  darkness  tremble.  We  shall  have 
to  render  an  account  to  him  who  hath  searched 
our  hearts,  who  hath  spied  out  all  our  ways ;  we 
shall  have  to  render  an  account  to  him  of  all  our 
thoughts,  all  our  words,  all  our  actions ;  and  we 
shall  have  to  render  this  account  before  the  hosts 
of  heaven,  and  before  all  mankind  assembled  with 
us  to  receive  their  doom. 

Brethren,  if  we  have  hid  our  talent  in  the  earth, 
if  we  are  not  prepared  for  his  coming,  have  we  not 
cause  to  tremble  at  the  declaration — "  The  Lord  of 
these  servants  cometh  and  reckoneth  with  them !" 
But  if  we  have  diligently  improved  the  talents  com- 
mitted to  us,  we  may  then  lift  up  our  heads,  for  our 
redemption  draweth  nigh. 

5.  The  Judge  of  all  will  assign  to  mankind  va- 
rious degrees  of  happiness  or  misery,  according  to 
their  respective  deserts. 

This  is  the  concluding  reflection  resulting  from 
the  parable. 

The  just  shall  then  be  rewarded  with  an  entrance 
into  the  joy  of  their  Lord;  and  their  joy  shall  be  in 
proportion  to  the  talents  committed  to  them,  and 
to  the  improvement  which  they  have  made.  For 
thus  is  the  award  of  the  Judge  represented  in  this 
very  parable,  as  recorded  by  St.  Luke  : — To  him 
that  had  received  ten  pounds,  and  had  made  them 
ten  pounds  more,  was  committed  authority  over 
ten  cities;  and  to  him  that  had  received  five  pounds, 
and  had  made  them  five  pounds  more,  was  com- 
mitted authority  over  five  cities.  The  rewards  of 
the  just  will  be  proportionable  to  the  talents  be- 
stowed, and  to  the  improvement  of  them ;  to  the 
grace  which  they  had  received,  and  to  the  service 


462  THE  DISTRIBUTION  OP  THE  TALENTS. 

which  they  had  rendered.  This  is  the  dictate  of 
reason,  this  is  the  rule  of  justice.  In  our  Father's 
house  are  many  mansions.  One  star  differeth  from 
another  star  in  glory ;  so  also  shall  it  be  at  the 
resurrection  of  the  just. 

But  as  to  the  unprofitable  servant — what  is  the 
doom  pronounced  upon  him  \  "  Cast  ye  the  unpro- 
fitable servant  into  outer  darkness :  there  shall  be 
weeping  and  gnashing  of  teeth."  The  same  rule 
of  justice  which  assigns  different  degrees  of  happi- 
ness in  heaven  to  the  just,  will  also  allot  different 
degrees  of  misery  in  hell  to  the  wicked,  according 
to  the  measure  of  their  guilt.  But,  alas !  hell,  in 
its  lightest  caverns,  is  still  a  place  of  torment ; 
outer  darkness  covers  it — the  worm  in  it  ceases 
not  to  gnaw — the  fire  in  it  is  not  quenched  ;  no 
sounds  issue  from  it  but  the  sounds  of  despair — 
weeping,  and  wailing,  and  gnashing  of  teeth,  for 
ever — for  ever. 

Brethren,  what  an  awful  sanction  does  the  con- 
cluding representation  Of  this  parable  afford  to  the 
moral  which  it  contains !  They  who  improve  the 
talents  committed  to  them,  are  admitted  to  the  joy 
of  their  Lord ;  while  the  slothful  and  unprofitable 
are  cast  into  outer  darkness.  Bring  home,  then, 
this  awful  scene  to  your  own  bosoms ;  bear  it  con- 
stantly in  remembrance.  You  are  stewards,  to 
whom  your  Lord  and  Master  hath  intrusted  his 
goods— the  gifts  of  nature,  of  Providence,  and  of 
grace — in  such  proportion  as  his  infinite  wisdom 
judged  best.  To  some  of  you  he  hath  given  five, 
to  others  two  talents,  and  to  others  one.  He  is 
not  "  a  hard  Master,  reaping  where  he  has  not 
sowed,  and  gathering  where  he  has  not  strewed ;'" 
he  will  not  require  from  you  a  service  which  he 


THE  DISTRIBUTION  OF  THE  TALENTS.  46S 

feath  not  enabled  you  to  perform,  nor  will  he  dis- 
proportion his  rewards  to  your  labours.  If  humble 
the  talents  of  nature  or  of  grace  given  you,  sedu- 
lously improve  them,  and  you  shall  not  go  without 
your  reward.  If  more  distinguished  your  natural 
endowments  or  spiritual  gifts,  greater  will  be  your 
responsibility,  more  will  be  required  of  you ;  and 
greater  also  will  be  your  reward.  Your  Lord  will 
come  and  reckon  with  you.  Hide  not,  then,  your 
talent  in  the  earth ;  sink  not  into  sloth  and  ne^li- 
gence  in  your  spiritual  concerns ;  receive  not  the 
grace  of  God  in  vain ;  neglect  not  the  business  of 
your  salvation.  Remember,  O  remember  the  doom 
of  the  unprofitable  servant — outer  darkness,  weep- 
ing, wailing,  and  gnashing  of  teeth,  for  ever — for 
ever.  Diligently,  then,  improve  the  talents  com- 
mitted to  you  ;  devote  every  endowment  of  nature, 
every  acquirement  of  industry,  every  blessing  of 
Providence,  every  spiritual  gift,  to  the  glory  of 
God,  to  the  good  of  mankind,  to  the  salvation  of 
your  own  soul.  Your  labour  in  the  Lord  shall  not 
be  in  vain.  In  the  day  when  he  comes  to  reckon 
with  his  servants,  ho  wall  cover  with  the  robe  of 
his  righteousness  the  infirmities  which  you  have 
sought  to  overcome,  the  sins  which  you  have  hum- 
bly confessed  :  he  will  bring  forth  to  the  plaudits 
of  men  and  angels,  your  humble  piety,  your  exer- 
tions for  his  glory,  your  deeds  of  beneficence,  your 
patience,  your  adversity,  your  zealous  discharge  of 
duty,  neither  seduced  by  the  applauses  of  the  world, 
nor  shaken  by  its  censures:  to  the  plaudits  of  men 
and  angels  he  will  unite  his  own — "  Well  done, 
good  and  faithful  servants,  enter  ye  into  the  joy  of 
vour  Lord." 


SERMON   XXXVIII. 


THE  TEN  LEPERS. 


LcKE  xvii.  ]7, 18. 

Were  there  not  ten  cleansed  1  but  where  are  the  nine  ?     There 
are  not  retwned  to  give  glory  to  God,  save  this  stranger. 

Never  surely  did  a  personage  appear  on  the 
ea^'th  with  such  claims  to  the  admiration,  love,  and 
gratitude  of  mankind,  as  the  blessed  Redeemer  of 
the  world.  Uniting  in  his  adorable  person  the  glories 
of  the  Divinity  with  the  perfection  of  human  virtue ; 
the  Creator  and  Lord  of  the  universe,  and  at  the 
same  time  the  bountiful  Benefactor  and  compas- 
sionate Saviour  of  the  human  race;  the  brightness 
of  the  Father's  glory  and  the  express  image  of  his 
person,  and  at  the  same  time  condescending  to 
assume  a  human  body,  that  in  it  he  might  bear  our 
sins  and  carry  our  sorrows ;  there  are  no  emotions 
of  admiration,  gratitude,  and  love,  of  which  the 
human  heart  is  susceptible,  that  should  not  have 
been  rendered  to  him  ;  and  yet  he  was  despised 
and  rejected  by  those  on  whom  he  conferred  the 
greatest  blessings — was  constantly  assailed  by  that 
ingratitude,  which  at  length,  under  its  overwhelm- 
ing load,  crushed  him,  an  innocent  victim,  on  the 
cross. 

Of  this  lamentable  truth,  the  history  of  the  ten 
lepers  that  were  cleansed  is  one  of  the  many  proofs 
with  which  the  suffering  life  of  the  Saviour  abounds. 


I 


THE  TEN  LEPERS.  465 

•These  persons  were  afflicted  with  a  malady  of  the 
most  loathsome  and  disgusting  description.  The 
leprosy  was,  in  its  own  nature,  a  dreadful  disease, 
and  it  was  made  more  so  by  the  institutions  of  the 
Jewish  law.  This  law,  designed,  as  a  school-master, 
to  bring  men  to  Christ,  typified,  by  its  various  in- 
stitutions and  ceremonies,  that  spiritual  redemption 
which  was  finally  to  be  wrought  for  men  by  the 
glorious  Messiah,  the  desire  of  all  nations  and  the 
hope  of  his  people  Israel.  As  the  leprosy  was  a 
powerful,  insidious,  and  loathsome  disorder,  that 
tainted  the  very  sources  of  life,  and  corrupted  the 
whole  body,  it  was  therefore  considered  by  this 
law  as  typical  of  sin,  that  direful  malady  of  the 
soul  which  corrupts  all  her  powers  and  taints  the 
principles  of  spiritual  life.  To  denote,  therefore, 
the  great  evil  of  sin,  together  with  its  fatal  conse- 
quences, they  who  were  afflicted  with  the  leprosy 
— the  impressive  and  highly  appropriate  type  of 
the  corrupting  malady  of  the  soul — were  cut  oft' 
from  all  intercourse  with  the  rest  of  the  Jews,  were 
separated  from  a  participation  in  their  religious 
ordinances,  and  were  shunned,  as  objects  vile  and 
disgusting.  The  numerous  sacrifices  that  were  to 
be  made,  and  the  purifications  which  the  leper  was 
to  undergo,  on  his  leprosy  being  healed,  before  he 
could  be  received  again  into  civil  and  religious 
communion,  were  highly  significant  emblems  of 
that  one  great  sacrifice  which  Christ  was  to  make 
for  sin,  and  of  the  spiritual  purification  which  the 
sinner  must  undergo  before  he  could  be  restored 
to  the  favour  of  God. 

With  this  direful  disorder  were  those  ten  persons 
afflicted,  who,  in  the  bitterness  of  grief,  and  in  all 
the  earnest  fervour  of  supplication,  standing  afar 

Vol.  III.  59 


4GG  THE  TEN  LEPER'S. 

off,  lonely  and  shunned — being  separated,  on  ac- 
count of  their  leprosy,  from  all  intercourse  with 
others — "  lifted  up  their  voices  and  said,  Jesus, 
Master,  have  mercy  on  us."  Tlie  cry  of  supplica- 
tion was  never  addressed  to  Jesus  in  vain  ;  the 
diseased  and  the  miserable  always  found  in  him 
an  almighty  Friend,  desirous  and  able  to  succour 
and  to  save.  When,  therefore,  he  saw  the  lepers, 
"  he  said  unto  them,  Go  show  yourselves  to  the 
priests."  The  priests,  according  ta  the  Jewish  law, 
were  to  judge  when  the  leprosy  was  healed,  and 
were  to  appoint  the  necessary  sacrifices  and  puri- 
fications. The  direction  of  our  Saviour,  therefore, 
thai  thuy  should  go  and  show  tlitJiiiselves  unto  the 
priests,  was  to  them,  in  fact,  a  pledge  that  they 
should  be  healed  from  their  leprosy.  "  And  it 
accordingly  came  to  pass,  that  as  they  went,  they 
were  cleansed."  What  shoul-d  have  been  their 
emotions  and  their  conduct  on  thus  finding  them- 
selves unexpectedly  relieved  from  this  loathsome 
and  dreadful  malady]  Should  not  the  tribute  of  lively 
thanks  have  been  immediately  paid  to  their  graci- 
ous and  almighty  Deliverer'?  Alas!  there  was  only 
one  of  the  ten,  and  he  not  a  Jew,  who  valued  him- 
self on  his  religious  character  and  privileges,  but  a 
Samaritan — belonging  to  a  people  among  whom  a 
temple  was  established  distinct  from  the  temple  at 
Jerusalem — and  who  was  therefore  considered  by 
the  Jews  as  an  outcast  from  their  church  and  na- 
tion— only  "  one  of  them,  when  he  saw  that  he  was 
healed,  turned  back,  and  with  a  loud  voice  glori- 
fied God  ;"  overwhelmed  with  the  emotions  of  gra- 
titude and  affection,  "  he  fell  down  on  his  face  at 
the  feet  of  his  almighty  Deliverer,  giving  him 
thanks."    Struck  with  the  grateful  affection  of  this 


THE  TEN  LEPERS.  4G7 

poor  Samaritan,  and  indignant  at  the  insensibility 
and  ingratitude  of  the  proud  and  self-conceited 
Jews,  who  went  on  their  way  without  expressing 
any  sentiment  of  gratitude  for  their  deliverance, 
Jesus  sorrowfully  and  expressively  exclaimed — ■ 
"  Were  there  not  ten  cleansed  I  but  where  are  the 
nine?  There  are  not  found  that  returned  to  give 
glory  to  God,  save  this  stranger." 

This  history,  my  brethren,  forcibly  suggests  to 
us  the  guilt  of  the  sin  of  ingratitude  to  God.  While 
therefore  we  feel  the  sentiments  of  lively  indigna- 
tion rise  in  our  bosoms  at  the  view  of  the  insensi- 
bility and  ingratitude  which  the  nine  lepers  who 
were  cleansed  displayed  under  the  signal  mercy 
which  they  received,  it  may  be  productive  of  salu- 
tary improvement,  and  it  is  certainly  incumbent 
upon  us  diligently  and  seriously  to  inquire  whether 
we  are  not  justly  chargeable  with  the  same  base 
sin  of  ingratitude  to  God — whether  we  do  not  merit 
the  indignant  reproaches  which  every  feeling  and 
ingenuous  mind  is  disposed  to  cast  on  the  lepers 
who  were  healed,  on  the  insensible  and  ungrateful 
objects  of  the  Saviour's  mercy. 

Let  us  consider  the  many  obligations,  and  review 
the  many  mercies  and  favours  that  call  for  grati- 
tude to  God,  and  see  whether  we  are  absolved  from 
the  guilt  of  violating  this  duty. 

We  have  received  from  that  Almighty  Jehovah 
who  created  us  after  his  own  image,  a  rational  and 
immortal  nature,  endued  with  powers  vigorous  and 
exalted,  capable  of  ranging,  with  inextinguishable 
ardour,  through  the  works  of  the  Creator — of  ex- 
ploring, with  keen  and  vigorous  research,  the  hid- 
den recesses  of  truth — and  above  all,  of  receiving 
the  knowledge  of  the  existence,  and  the  attributes, 


468  THE  TEN  LEPERS. 

and  the  will  of  the  Maker  and  Lord  of  all  things — 
of  knowing,  of  loving,  and  of  enjoying,  to  all  eter- 
nity, the  infinitely  exalted  Fountain  of  truth,  of 
goodness,  of  virtue,  and  of  happiness.  Have  we 
given  glory  to  God  for  this  inestimable  gift  of  a  be- 
ing spiritual  in  its  nature,  immorial  in  its  existence, 
and  capable  of  making  continual  advances  to  the 
perfection  and  happiness  of  Deity  itself!  Have 
our  hearts  overflowed  with  the  emotions  of  grati- 
tude to  our  glorious  Maker,  for  ranking  us  thus 
high  in  the  scale  of  being— for  enduing  us  with 
capacities  for  the  most  exquisite,  pure,  and  immor- 
tal enjoyments'!  or  have  we  not,  on  the  contrary, 
gone  on  our  way,  seldom  reflecting  on  the  exalted 
dignity  of  our  nature,  and  still  less  frequently  glo- 
rifying and  magnifying  the  name  of  our  Almighty 
Maker  1  Have  we  not  ungratefully  employed  the 
exalted  powers  he  has  bestowed  on  us,  in  the  ca- 
reer of  sin  and  folly,  in  the  pursuit  of  transitory 
and  sensual  gratifications,  instead  of  devoting  them 
to  the  glory  of  him  who  made  us,  to  the  service  of 
him  from  whom  we  have  derived  them  1  Ah !  my 
brethren,  much  I  fear  that  these  inquiries  will  con- 
vict us  of  having  failed  in  these  important  duties ; 
that  they  will  fix  on  us  the  stain  of  ingratitude  to 
the  infinitely  glorious  Author  of  our  being.  To 
the  good  providence  of  him  whose  tender  mercies 
are  over  all  his  works,  we  are  indebted  for  the 
preservation  of  our  being,  for  the  countless  enjoy- 
ments that  crown  our  lot  in  life.  He  has  placed 
us  in  a  world  enriched  with  beauties  and  glories 
that  gratify  every  sense,  and  impart  pleasure  to 
every  feeling  of  the  heart.  Not  dooming  us  to 
solitary,  and  therefore  to  selfish  joy,  he  has  con- 
nected us  in  society  by  a  thousand  ties,  and  made 


THE  TEN  LEPERS.  469 

the  exquisite  emotions  of  pleasure  in  the  breasts 
of  others  beat  responsive  to  those  in  our  own.  In 
the  many  endearing  relations  of  social  and  domes- 
tic life  he  has  provided  a  rich  increase  of  all  our 
joys,  a  powerful  alleviation  of  all  our  sorrows. 
Exercising  towards  us  more  than  parental  care,  he 
"  keeps  us  as  the  apple  of  his  eye,  he  guards  us  as 
in  the  hollow  of  his  hand  ;"  and  "  though  father 
and  friend  forsake  us,  yet  will  not  he,  whose  good- 
ness is  boundless  as  his  nature,  and  enduring  as 
his  existence.  Have  then  these  many  blessings  of 
his  providence  been  returned  with  our  homage, 
our  love,  our  obedience  1  or,  have  we  gone  on  our 
way,  enjoying  the  bounties  of  his  providence,  heed- 
less of  the  gracious  Giver,  neglectful  of  the  tribute 
of  affection  and  obedience  due  to  him  I  Ah  !  it  is 
to  be  feared  that  conscience  will  fix  on  some  of  us 
not  only  the  stain  of  this  criminal  indifference  and 
neglect,  but  the  deeper  guilt  of  having  abused  his 
bounties,  to  the  corrupting  of  our  own  hearts,  to 
the  violation  of  his  laws,  and  to  the  dishonour  of 
his  name. 

Again :  Infinitely  powerful  as  are  the  claims  of 
the  Almighty,  as  our  Creator  and  Preserver,  to  our 
gratitude  and  love,  he  appears  in  a  relation  to  us 
still  more  endearing,  still  more  loudly  calling  on 
us  for  the  supreme  and  grateful  homage  of  our 
hearts  and  lives.  From  everlasting  misery,  the 
just  punishment  of  our  numerous  and  aggravated 
violations  of  his  laws,  he  offers  us  redemption  :  to 
the  everlasting  joys  of  his  own  glorious  presence, 
which  our  most  splendid  and  perfect  virtue  could 
not  merit,  he  gives  us  a  title.  From  death  and 
misery  he  thus  rescues  us ;  to  heaven  and  immor- 
tality he  thus  exalts  us ; — not  by  any  human  agency, 


470  THE  TEN  LEPERS. 

not  by  the  instrumentality  of  the  most  exalted  angel 
of  his  presence ;  but  by  the  sacrifice  of  his  only- 
begotten  and  well-beloved  Son.  This  is  a  stupen- 
dous display  of  love,  which  absorbs  in  ceaseless 
adoration  the  host  of  heaven.  Has  it  awakened  in 
our  hearts  the  sentiments  of  ardent  gratitude'? 
Have  we,  the  unworthy  subjects  of  this  stupendous 
redemption,  embraced  it  with  thankfulness  1  Have 
we  humbly  devoted  ourselves  to  the  service  of  him 
who  has  redeemed  us  from  hell  and  destruction, 
and  conferred  on  us  a  title  to  an  immortal  and 
glorious  existence  ?  or,  have  we  not,  on  the  con- 
trary, gone  on  our  way,  busied  solely  with  the 
schemes  of  worldly  aggrandizement,  immersed  in 
sensual  pursuits,  and  regardless  of  the  glorious 
redemption  wrought  for  us  by  the  sufferings  and 
death  of  the  Son  of  God  1  If  this  character  should 
apply  to  us,  indignant  as  we  may  be  at  being  sup- 
posed capable  of  ingratitude,  be  assured,  we  have 
incurred  its  deepest  guilt. 

Pass  from  these  general  to  the  more  particular 
mercies  which  we  have  received  frum  the  overflow- 
ing goodness  of  our  God. 

Can  we  not  look  back  to  some  dismaying  period, 
when  sickness  held  us  in  its  agonizing  grasp,  and 
death  appeared  to  be  laying  his  cold  hand  on  the 
pulse  of  life  I  The  Lord  of  sickness  and  of  health, 
of  life  and  death,  in  his  abundant  compassion  al- 
layed the  malady  that  was  torturing  our  frame,  and 
arrested  the  approach  of  the  king  of  terrors.  And 
for  this  gracious  deliverance  have  we  praised  our 
Almighty  Benefactor  in  the  courts  of  his  house, 
paid  our  vows  to  him  in  the  assembly  of  his  people, 
and  devoted  to  his  service  the  life  which  he  gra- 
ciously spared  ?    Alas !  on  the  contrary,  have  not 


THE  TEN  LEiPERSj  471 

the  emotions  of  gratitude  which  at  the  fivst  moment 
of  our  deliverance  were  enkindled  in  our  bosoms, 
been  extinguished  by  the  first  breath  of  worldly 
pleasure,  and  the  vows  of  duty  been  forgotten  in 
worldly  business,  care,  and  enjoyment!  and  have 
not  these,  instead  of  the  service  of  him  who  rescued 
our  souls  from  death,  engrossed  our  thoughts,  our 
hearts,  and  our  lives  1 

Again  :  Can  we  not  recall  the  period  when  some 
general  or  some  sudden  calamity  threatened  to 
overwhelm  us ;  or  when,  plunged  in  the  depths  of 
adversity,  almost  every  ray  of  worldly  comfort 
seemed  excluded?  He  who  alone  restrains  the 
pestilence  that  walketh  in  darkness,  as  well  as  the 
arrow  that  flieth  at  noon  day — he  who  rides  in  the 
whirlwind  and  directs  the  angry  storm  of  adversity, 
redeemed  our  lives  from  destruction,  and  caused 
the  bright  morning  of  joy  to  succeed  the  sorrowful 
night  of  affliction.  Ah !  has  the  tribute  of  lively 
gratitude  ascended  to  him  l  has  the  service  of  the 
life  which  he  has  redeemed  and  blessed  shown 
forth  his  glory! 

Can  we  not  look  back,  to  the  sorrowful  period, 
when,  bending  over  the  almost  lifeless  body  of 
some  near  and  dear  relative  or  friend,  our  agonized 
spirit  poured  forth  the  earnest  and  repeated  prayer 
to  the  Father  of  mercies — '  Spare,  oh  !  spare  him, 
and  my  future  life  shall  be  devoted  to  thy  glory  V. 
God  in  mercy  heard  our  prayers,  and  restored  to 
our  embrace  the  object  of  our  affections.  And  has 
that  gracious  Being  witnessed  also  our  gratitude, 
witnessed  the  performance  of  our  vows  1  Alas ! 
like  the  morning  cloud,  like  the  early  dew,  they 
have  too  often  vanished  away. 

When  the  rod  of  chastisement  has  been  stretched 


47^  THE  TEN  LEPERS. 

over  us,  has  not  wrath  been  tempered  with  mercy  l 
If  we  have  had  cause  to  mourn  over  the  loss  of*  an 
earthly  blessing,  the  disruption  of  some  tender  tie 
of  life,  had  we  not  also  cause  to  magnify  the  name 
of  our  God,  that  he  did  not,  in  just  judgment,  strip 
us  of  every  enjoyment — -that  he  still  opened  to  us  the 
bosom  of  his  mercy,  where  we  might  find  consola- 
tion and  everlasting  restl  Have  we  thus  fled  from 
the  sorrows  and  trials  of  life  to  God,  our  almighty 
refuge  1  In  the  midst  of  the  dark  cloud  of  adver- 
sity that  overwhelmed  us,  animated  by  the  divine 
favour,  have  we  rejoiced  in  the  Lord,  and  joyed  in 
the  God  of  our  salvation  l  Alas  !  on  the  contrary, 
have  we  not  too  often  indulged  in  the  murmurs  of 
discontent  and  repining,  and  sought  to  forget  those 
afflictions  by  which  God  designed  to  rouse  us  to 
repentance  in  the  circles  of  worldly  enjoyment? 

Cannot  we  recall  many  spiritual  mercies  that  lay 
claim  to  our  lively  gratitude  l  When  bowed  down^ 
like  the  bruised  reed,  under  the  weight  of  our  sins 
— when,  the  storms  of  God's  justice  threatening 
us,  we  were  ready  to  give  ourselves  up  to  despair ; 
has  not  consolation  from  the  Father  of  mercies 
and  the  God  of  all  comfort  flowed  into  our  bosoms? 
Has  not  faith  in  the  atonement  of  the  Lamb  of  God 
who  taketh  away  the  sin  of  the  world,  like  the 
soothing  balm  of  Gilead,  allayed  the  sorrow  of  our 
hearts'!  Hath  not  the  name  of  Jesus,  like  the  pre- 
cious  ointment  poured  forth,  shed  consolation  and 
joy  through  our  troubled  bosoms  I  Have  our  souls 
n  Ver  been  refreshed  with  those  divine  comforts 
which  spring  from  the  favour  of  God,  from  confi- 
dence in  his  protection  and  grace,  from  the  glorious 
prospect  of  our  heavenly  inheritance — comforts 
which  bear  us  in  holy  confidence  above  the  world ; 


TliE  tEN  LEPER18.  473 

•which  defy  its  storms,  its  persecutions,  and  its  sor- 
rows ]  Have  we  not  all  cause  to  adore  the  merci- 
ful forbearance,  the  long-suffering  goodness  of  our 
God,  who,  unprovoked  by  our  sins,  by  our  impeni- 
tence, by  our  ingratitude,  still  continues  to  us  the 
offers  of  his  mercy,  the  means  of  grace,  the  hope 
of  glory  1  Ah!  these  are  spiritual  mercies,  which, 
infinitely  more  than  any  temporal  blessings,  de- 
mand our  homage,  our  gratitude,  our  most  faithful 
and  zealous  service.  And  how  have  they  been 
returned  1  Have  we,  like  the  grateful  Samaritan 
leper,  when  cleansed  from  our  spiritual  maladies, 
and  refreshed  with  the  comforts  of  the  divine  fa- 
vour, returned  and  given  glory  to  God,  or,  like 
the  nine  insensible  Jews,  gone  on  our  way,  elated 
with  spiritual  self-confidence  and  pride,  regardless 
of  our  solemn  obligations  to  glorify  our  God  by 
more  vigorous  and  faithful  obedience  ? 

Brethren,  it  surely  cannot  be  necessary  for  me 
to  denounce  the  crime  of  ingratitude,  to  portray  its 
guilt  and  its  enormity ;  there  is  not  a  heart  which 
will  not  instantly  disclaim  it  as  the  offspring  of  that 
criminal  indifference  or  disgraceful  pride  which 
extinguishes  every  generous,  noble,  and  amiable 
feeling,  and  sinks  the  heart  in  sullen  and  gloomy 
insensibility.  There  is  not  an  individual  present 
who  would  not  resent  the  charge  of  being  insen- 
sible to  favours  conferred,  of  ungratefully  requiting 
his  benefactor :  reflect  then,  I  beseech  you,  how 
great  will  be  your  inconsistency,  how  awful  your 
criminality,  if  you  are  guilty  of  ingratitude  towa  -ds 
that  Almighty  Being  whose  favours  sink  in  com- 
parison the  most  splendid  favours  of  the  most 
powerful  earthly  benefactor — that  Almighty  Lord 
who  has  given  you  life,  and  being,  and  reason,  and 

Vol.  HI.  60 


474  THE  TEN  LEPERS. 

enjoyment,  sijiritual  mercy,  glory  and  immortality*,- 
and  guilty  of  ingratitude  you  will  undoubtedly  be, 
ingratitude,  the  enormity  of  which  language  would 
fail  to  portray,  unless  you  devote  to  your  heavenly 
Father  the  service  of  your  hearts  and  your  lives— 
unless  you  make  his  goodness  the  theme  of  your 
praises,  his  favour  the  object  of  your  pursuit,  and 
his  laws  the  rule  of  your  conduct.  As  you  would 
wish,  then,  to  escape  the  ch-arge  of  an  ingratitude 
that  will  be  your  disgrace,  your  everlasting  punish- 
ment, repent,  from  the  heart  repent  of  all  your  past 
abuse  of  the  mercies  of  your  God,  repent  of  all  the 
ungrateful  retarns  you  have  made  to  him  for  his 
infinite  goodness.  Forsake  your  sius,  continuance 
in  which  displays  the  basest  insensibility  to  his 
mercy  and  love.  With  renewed  fidelity  devote 
yourselves  to  him,  through  his  eternal  Son  Jesus 
Christ,  by  whose  merits  and  grace  he  importunes 
you  to  be  reconciled  unto  him.  Exercise  that  lively 
faith  in  the  Son  of  God  which  will  make  you  whole, 
not  merely  like  the  ^'amaritan  leper,  from  a  worldly 
leprosy,  but  from  the  spiritual  leprosy  of  sin.  Ever 
cherishing  in  your  minds  a  lively  sense  of  the  ma- 
nifold, the  infinite  mercies  of  your  God  and  Saviour, 
be  yours  the  holy  resolution  of  the  pious  David  : 
"  I  will  sing  unto  the  Lord  as  long  as  I  live,  I  will 
praise  my  God  while  I  have  my  being.  My  medi- 
tation of  him  shall  be  sweet ;  I  will  be  glad  in  the 
Lord.  Praise  thou  the  Lord,  O  my  soul,  praise 
the  Lord." 

These  are  the  emotions  with  which  those  who 
partake  of  the  Lord's  supper  should  always  ap- 
.proacli  the  holy  table;  for  there  we  are  to  show 
forth  the  Lord's  death  till  he  come ;  there  we  are 
cUHed  to  a  festival  tlie  most  j,oyful  that  can  awaken 


fHE  TEN  LEPERS^  475 

'Qur  aftections  or  engage  our  hearts ;  there,  with 
angels  and  archangels,  and  all  the  company  of 
heaven,  we  are  to  Jaud  and  magnify  the  glorious 
name  of  Almighty  God,  our  heavenly  Father,  who, 
of  his  tender  mercy,  gave  his  only  Son  Jesus  Christ 
to  sufi'er  death  upon  the  cross  for  our  redemption. 
Greater  love  than  this  was  never  displayed.  Live- 
lier emotions  of  gratitude  should  never  be  in  exer- 
cise, than  those  with  which  we  celebrate  this  stu- 
pendous act  of  grace  and  mercy,  that  meritorious 
sacrifice,  whereby  alone  we  obtain  the  remission 
of  our  sins,  and  are  made  partakers  of  the  kingdom 
of  heaven.  And  let  those  who  never  commemorate 
the  love  of  him  wiio  yielded  up  his  soul,  by  death 
upon  the  cross,  for  theirl*edemption,  seriously,  most 
seriously  consider  with  what  plea  they  shall  repel 
the  charge  of  ingratitude,  which  must  deserve,  and 
will  receive,  sore  punishment,  in  that  day  when  the 
Saviour,  whose  mercy  they  now  neglect,  will  be 
that  Judge  whose  justice  they  cannot  escape.  Let 
them  then  repent  of  their  past  neglect  and  insensi- 
bility, and  no  longer  violate  a  command  the  mo&t 
solemn  and  affecting  that  ever  was  uttered — for  it 
was  uttered  by  the  Son  of  God,  who  died  for  us — ■ 
^^  This  do  in  remembrance  of  me." 


SERMON   XXXIX, 


THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS, 


Luke  xvi,  39,  20,  21. 

There  was  a  certain  rich  man,  who  was  clothed  in  purple  and 
fine  linen,  and  fared  sumptuously  every  day:  and  there  was  a 
certain  beggar  named  Lazarus,  who  was  laid  at  his  gate,  full  of 
sores,  and  desiring  to  be  fed  with  the  crumbs  which  fell  from 
the  rich  man's  table ;  moreover,  the  dogs  came  and  licked  his 
sores. 

Thus  unequal  is  the  distribution  of  the  good 
things  of  the  present  life ;  thus  apparently  unjust 
are  the  dispensations  of  Providence.  We  behold 
here  a  rich  man,  surrounded  by  every  luxury  which 
can  conduce  to  his  splendour,  his  ease,  or  his 
enjoyment.  His  wealth  procured  for  him  all  the 
richest  productions  of  the  earth,  and  his  table  daily 
exhibited  every  delicacy  that  could  excite  or  gra- 
tify his  appetite.  "  He  was  clothed  in  purple  and 
fine  linen,  and  fared  sumptuously  every  day."  How 
often  is  the  extreme  of  wretchedness  contrasted 
with  the  elevation  of  prosperity !  At  the  gate  of 
this  voluptuous  sensualist,  whose  ingenuity  doubt- 
less was  exercised  to  dispose  of  his  superfluous 
wealth,  was  laid  Lazarus,  a  beggar,  subsisting 
from  day  to  day  on  the  pittance  which  his  entrea- 
ties extorted  from  tho  careless  sons  of  prosperity, 
or  which  some  sympathizing  heart  bestowed.  The 
pains  of  loathsome  disease  aggravated  the  cravings 


THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS,  477' 

of  hunger — he  was  "  full  of  sores  :"  and  thus  was 
laid  a  pitiable  and  wretched  outcast  at  the  rich 
man's  gate.  The  cravings  of  hunger  extorted  the 
entreaty  to  be  fed,  if  it  were  only  with  "  the  crumbs 
which  fell  from  the  rich  man's  table."  But  in  vain 
he  stretched  forth  the  hand  of  supplication  and 
uttered  the  cry  of  entreaty ;  in  vain  did  the  look  of 
anguish  and  the  tear  of  misery  make  the  silent  but 
powerful  appeal  to  the  bosoms  of  those  around 
him.  Disgusted  with  his  extreme  wretchedness,  it 
appears  they  left  him,  without  succour  and  without 
consolation.  Exposed  and  abandoned,  "  the  dogs 
came  and  licked  his  sores." 

My  brethren,  when  we  behold  this  virtuous  man 
(for  such  is  the  character  which  he  sustains  in  the 
parable)  sinking  under  the  ills  of  poverty  and  sick- 
ness, while  the  voluptuous  sensualist,  at  whose  gate 
he  was  laid,  rolled  on  the  couch  of  ease  and  luxury ; 
when  we  behold  him  perishing  for  want  of  the 
crumbs  which  fell  from  the  rich  man's  table,  whose 
pampered  appetite  was  sated  with  the  delicacies 
that,  in  luxurious  profusion,  were  spread  before 
him ;  we  are  tempted  to  exclaim,  in  the  murmurs 
of  impatient  distrust — "  What  is  the  Almighty,  that 
we  should  serve  him "!  and  what  profit  should  we 
have  if  we  pray  unto  him  1  Verily  we  have  cleansed 
our  hearts  in  vain,  and  washed  our  hands  in  inno- 
cency."  These  are  the  suggestions  which  some- 
limes  arise  in  our  minds,  when  we  behold  vice 
exalted  in  the  world,  and  virtue  suffering  and  de- 
graded. But,  my  brethren,  if  we  look  beyond  this 
dark  and  imperfect  state  of  trial  to  the  final  deve- 
lopment of  the  plans  of  Providence  in  that  future 
world  which  will  be  our  final  and  eternal  abode,, 
the  murmurs  of  discontent  and  repining  will  be 


478  THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS. 

silenced,  and  in  the  ardours  of  pious  adoration  we, 
Ghall  embrace  the  triumphant  belief — "  Verily  there 
is  a  reward  for  the  righteous  ;  doubtless  there  is  a 
God  that  judgeth  the  earth."     For 

"  It  came  to  pass,  that  the  beggar  died,  and  was 
carried  by  the  angels  into  Abraham's  bosom  :  the 
rich  man  also  died,  and  was  buried :  and  in  hell 
he  lift  up  his  eyes,  being  in  torments,  and  seeth 
Abraham  afar  off,  and  Lazarus  in  his  bosom." 

What  a  change  is  this  !  The  poor  beggar  who 
was  laid  at  the  gate,  whose  famished  bosom  would 
have  been  refreshed  with  the  crumbs  which  fell 
from  the  rich  man's  table — the  wretched  victim  of 
poverty  and  disease,  from  whom  men\urned  with 
disgust — whose  wretchedness  was  so  extreme,  and 
whose  situation  so  friendless,  that  even  the  dogs 
came  and  licked  liis  sores — is  now  exalted  to  a 
state  of  happiness  and  glory :  while  the  rich  man^ 
who  in  the  world,  which  he  made  his  portion,  was 
"  ciathed  in  purple  and  fine  linen,  and  fared  sump- 
tuously every  day,"  has  exchanged  the  splendid 
and  luxurious  chamber  for  the  dungeon  of  wo,  and 
the  voluptuous  joys  of  sensual  gratification  for  the 
worm  that  never  dies,  and  the  fire  that  never  will 
he  quenched* 

We  are  not  to  undei'stand  by  the  "  bosom  of 
Abraham,"  in  which  Lazarus  rested,  the  heaven  of 
final  happiness-;-  for  the  Gospel  uniformly  repre- 
sents that  the  glories  of  heaven  are  not  awarded 
to  the  righteous  "  till  the  resurrection  at  the  last 
day,"  when  the  body  which,  after  the  departure  of 
the  soul,  was  consigned  to  corruption,  will  rise  in 
glory,  and,  united  to  the  soul,  be  translated  to  the 
everlasting  kingdom  of  God.  The  "  bosom  of 
Abraham/'  wjiere  Lazarcis  rested,  is  a  figurative 


THE  KICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS.  47^ 

expression  for  that  invisible  place  where  the  souls 
of  the  pious  repose  in  hope,  in  joy,  and  peace,  till 
the  glorious  morn  of  ti^e  resurrection — aad  which 
is  called  Paradise,  in  the  declaration  of  Christ  to 
the  penitent  thief  upon  the  cross — "  This  day  thou 
shalt  be  with  me"  (not  in  heaven,  for  the  Saviour 
did  not  ascend  there  till  after  his  resnrrection^  but) 
"  in  pai'adise.^^ 

In  the  like  manner,  by  the  hell  in  which  the  rich 
man  lift  up  his  eyes,  is  not  meant  the  final  hell  of 
torments;  this  final  hell  of  torments  is  expressed 
ijQ  the  original  by  a  different  word  from  that  which 
is  denoted  hell  in  the  parable.    To  this  everlasting 
abode  of  condemned  spirits  the  Gospel  represents 
none  as  consigned  till  the  period  of  the  general 
resurrection.     The  bodies  of  the  wicked  will  then 
be  united  to  their  souls ;  and  the  awful  sentence 
which  consigns  them  to  the  final  hell  (gekennd)  of 
torments,  will  be  pronounced  upon  them.     By  the 
hell  in  the  parable  is  meant  the   invisible   place, 
the  place  of  departed  spirits,  where  the  souls  of 
the  wicked  remain  in  unutterable  misery,  tortured 
by  the  fearful  anticipation  of  that  just  judgment 
which  will  finally  consign  them  to  the  place  pre- 
pared for  the  devil  and  his  angels.     In  this  place 
of  the  departed  the  rich  man  lifts  up  his  eyes ;  he 
beholds  afar  off  Lazarus,  the  beggar  who  once  lay 
at  his  gate,  in  the  bosom  of  Abraham,  in  a  state  of 
inconceivable  blessedness  and  glory,  while  his  soul 
was  racked  by  torment.     He  burst  forth  in  the  cry 
for  mercy — 

"  Father  Abraham,  have  mercy  on  me." 
He  sought  to  have  the  fires  that  consumed  him 
quenched : 

"  Send  Lazarus,  that  he  may  dip  the  tip  of  his 


48(^  THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS. 

finger  in  water  and  cool  my  tongue  :  for  I  am  tor- 
mented in  this  flame." 

"Abraham  said,  Son,  remember  that  thou  in  thy 
lifetime  receivedst  thy  good  things,  and  likewise 
Lazarus  evil  things  :  but  now  he  is  comforted,  and 
thou  art  tormented." 

Thou  hast  had  thy  reward  in  the  world  which 
thou  didst  choose  as  thy  portion.  That  world  was 
embittered  to  Lazarus*  He  chose  a  better  portion, 
and  is  now  enjoying  the  blessed  fruits  of  his  choice. 

"  And  besides  all  this" — 

Your  destiny  and  his  are  unalterably  deter- 
mined— 

"  Between  us  and  you  there  is  a  great  gulf 
fixed :  so  that  they  who  would  pass  from  hence  to 
you,  cannot;  neither  can  they  pass  to  us,  who 
ivould  come  from  thence." 

The  unhappy  man,  finding  that  his  own  state 
xvas  hopeless,  is  filled  with  apprehension  for  his 
surviving  brethren,  who,  as  he  once  was,  are  im- 
mersed in  sensual  indulgence : 

"  I  pray  thee,  father,  that  thou  wouldest  send 
him  to  my  father's  house  :  for  I  have  five  brethren ; 
that  he  may  testify  unto  them,  lest  they  also  come 
into  this  place  of  torment." 

Equally  fruitles  was  this  request. 

"  Abraham  saith  unto  him,  They  have  Moses 
and  the  prophets" — 

These  are  a  sure  guide  in  the  path  of  duty,  and 
fully  and  forcibly  point  out  tlie  fatal  termination  of 
that  course  of  sensual  indulgence  which  has  proved 
your  destruction— 

"  Let  them  hear  them.  Nay,  father  Abraham,*' 
(exclaims  this  miserable  man.  svho,  wretched  him- 
self, appears  anxious  to  save  his  brethren,   the 


THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS.  481 

former  companions  of  his  guilty  pleasures,  from 
this  place  of  torment:)  "  but  if  one  went  unto  them 
from  the  dead  they  would  repent."  A  miracle  so 
extraordinary  would  convert  them ;  a  messenger 
from  the  world  of  spirits,  denouncing  to  them  those 
miseries  which  he  has  himself  witnessed,  will  surely 
rouse  them. 

"  If  they  hear  not  Moses  and  the  prophets,"  was 
the  reply,  "  neither  will  they  be  persuaded,  though 
one  rose  from  the  dead." 

The  revelation  of  Moses  and  the  prophets  is 
sufficiently  clear  and  satisfactory ;  and  the  same 
perverse  incredulity,  the  same  guilty  devotion  to 
sensual  enjoyments,  which  led  them  to  reject  the 
warnings  of  Moses  and  the  prophets,  will  induce 
them  to  turn  a  deaf  ear  also  to  the  remonstrances 
of  one  who  rose  from  the  dead. 

Such  is  the  conclusion  of  this  important  parable 
—for  a  parable,  and  not  an  authentic  history,  it 
evidently  is.  The  manner  of  its  introduction,  the 
style  and  the  imagery  employed,  and  the  absurdity 
and  inconsistency  which  would  attend  a  literal  in- 
terpretation, of  it,  all  prove  that  it  is  not  an  authen- 
tic record  of  real,  but  of  fictitious  character  and 
events.  And  as  a  parable,  it  is  not  to  be  strictly 
and  literally  interpreted ;  it  being  designed,  in  its 
general  purport  only,  to  inculcate  important  truths* 
To  these  truths  let  me  now  call  your  attention. 

].  And  in  the  first  place,  we  learn  that  the  real 
condition  of  men,  as  to  their  happiness  or  misery, 
is  not  to  be  determined  by  their  outward  circum-^ 
stances  in  the  \yorld. 

Look  at  the  prosperous  sinner ;  wealth,  splen- 
dour, and  gaitty  surround  him;  the  East  furnishes 

Vol.111.  %\ 


482  THE  RICH  MAi\  AND  LAZARUg. 

him  with  "  purple  and  fine  linen,"  which  serve  the 
purposes  of  splendour  and  luxurious  indulgence ; 
every  luscious  delicacy  which  can  inflame  or  gra- 
tify his  appetites  is  placed  on  his  table;  "the  harp 
and  the  viol,  the  tabret  and  the  pipe,"  banish  care 
and  melancholy,  and  awaken  the  joys  of  revelry 
and  mirth.  We  are  ready  to  pronounce.  How  su- 
premely happy  is  this  favoured  son  of  fortune !  He 
has  no  desire  which  he  does  not  possess  the  means 
of  gratifying;  the  world  opens  to  him  all  her  stores 
of  indulgence.  But  we  are  deceived  in  the  esti- 
mate of  his  real  condition.  Occupied  solely  with 
isensual  pursuits,  he  possesses  not  that  peace  of 
mind  which  results  only  from  living  agreeably  to 
the  dictates  of  reason  and  conscience  ;  and  he  is  a 
stranger  to  that  "  peace  of  God"  which  results  only 
from  a  faithful  devotion  to  his  service,  and  which 
only  can  confer  true  and  substantial  enjoyment. 
There  is  no  peace  to  him  in  this  world  ;  and  the 
day  is  coming,  when  the  hand  of  God  is  to  write 
against  him  the  fearful  sentence — "  Thou  art 
weighed  in  the  balance,  and  found  wanting."  "  In 
hell  he  lifts  up  his  eyes,  being  in  torments." 

Look  at  the  beggar  at  his  gate ;  he  is  wasted 
with  hunger — the  crumbs  which  fall  from  the  rich 
man's  table  would  be  a  luxury  to  his  soul ;  he  is 
tortured  with  disease — there  is  no  eye  to  pity,  no 
hand  to  save  him  ;  naked,  exposed,  friendless,  "the 
dogs  come  and  lick  his  sores."  Dark  is  the  cloud 
that  rests  on  this  poor  beggar ;  but  the  light  of 
God's  countenance  shines  on  his  soul.  He  is  infi- 
nitely more  honoured,  infinitely  more  blessed  than 
the  proud  voluptuary  at  whose  gate  he  waits ;  for 
Lazarus  is  the  friend  of  God  ;  he  is  soon  to  be 
"  carried  by  the  angels  into  Abraham's  bosom." 


THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS.        485 

**  Judge  not  then,  brethren,  according  to  appear- 
ance." It  is  an  error  to  call  those  happy,  whom 
wealth  decorates  with  worldly  distinction,  and  sur- 
rounds with  every  sensual  gratification — it  is  an 
error  which  is  most  dangerous,  because  it  leads  us 
to  seek  for  happiness  only  in  the  riches,  the  ho- 
nours, and  the  pleasures  of  the  world.  Those 
alone  are  to  be  accounted  truly  happy,  who  pos* 
sess  that  peace  of  God  which  the  world  can  neither 
give  nor  take  away,  and  have  laid  up  treasures  in 
heaven,  where  moth  and  rust  do  not  corrupt.  And 
those  only  are  to  be  accounted  really  miserable, 
who  have  no  title  to  the  favour  of  him  whose  favour 
is  life,  and  whose  loving-kindness  is  better  than 
life,  and  are  exposed  to  the  wrath  of  him  who  is 
able  to  destroy  both  soul  and  body  in  hell :  the 
pangs  of  conscience,  the  agitations  of  guilty  pas- 
sions, which  here  mar  their  peace,  are  increased 
by  the  fearful  apprehensions  of  that  future  world, 
where  are  laid  up  for  the  ungodly,  indignation  and 
wrath,  tribulation  and  anguish.  The  consciousness 
of  his  integrity,  the  firm  assurance  of  God's  favour, 
comforted  the  afflicted  Job.  The  wrath  of  the 
Almighty  blasted  the  pleasures  of  a  prosperous 
Belteshazzar.  The  favour  of  the  Most  High,  re- 
freshing, and  consoling,  and  strengthening  the 
soul,  can  render  the  condition  of  the  beggar  at  the 
gate  infinitely  more  to  be  desired  than  that  of  the 
voluptuary  who  revels  in  the  palace. 

2.  We  may  remark  how  fatal  is  the  termination 
of  a  life  which,  though  not  stained  with  gross  cri- 
minality, is  devoted  merely  to  sensual  indulgence. 

What  were  the  crimes  which  marked  the  charac- 
ter, and  which  occasioned  the  fearful  destiny  of  the 


484       THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS. 

rich  man  in  the  parable  ?  It  does  not  appear  that 
any  very  glaring  vices  disgraced  his  character ;  no 
gross  sin  is  laid  to  his  charge.  We  have  no  reason 
to  conclude  that  the  rich  man  in  the  parable  was 
an  abandoned,  profligate  sinner.  He  is  described 
as  "  clothed  in  purple  and  fine  linen,  and  faring 
sumptuously  every  day."  He  was  a  voluptuary, 
devoted  only  to  sensual  gratifications.  He  made 
the  world  his  idol.  He  placed  his  sole  happiness 
in  the  splendour  and  ostentation  of  wealth,  in  the 
scenes  of  revelling,  banqueting,  and  merriment. 
The  care  of  his  soul  was  forgotten,  or  neglected  ; 
the  things  that  belonged  to  his  eternal  peace  were 
put  far  off.  Most  probably  he  boasted  of  his  free- 
dom from  the  stain  of  gross  vices ;  perhaps  he 
prided  himself  on  his  open,  free,  and  generous 
temper ;  and  thus  soothed  himself  with  the  hope 
that,  as  he  had  committed  no  gross  vices,  his 
reckoning  would  be  easy  at  the  bar  of  God.  And, 
alas!  men  often  sooth  their  consciences,  and  lull 
themselves  into  security  by  the  same  plea : — they 
do  no  harm  in  the  world,  they  commit  no  gross 
sins  ;  why  should  they  fear  to  appear  before  God  1 
Let  them  look  at  the  fate  of  the  rich  man  in  the 
parable.  Notwithstanding  his  freedom  from  glar- 
ing sins,  the  boasted  innocence  of  his  life,  and  the 
generous  frankness  with  which  he  spread  his  board 
for  the  gratification  of  his  companions,  "  in  hell 
he  lift  up  his  eyes,  being  in  torments."  How  fatal 
was  his  delusion !  and  what  a  lesson  docs  his  fate 
read  to  those  whose  hearts  are  supremely  bent  on 
the  world  and  its  pleasures ;  who  devote  themselves 
to  sensual  gratifications,  and  while  they  preserve 
themselves  free  from  glaring  transgressions,  think 
that  they  have  nothing  to  fear !    Look  at  this  rich 


THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS.  485 

voluptuary ;  your  Saviour  presents  him  as  a  warn- 
ing to  you.  He  deluded  himself  with  the  same 
hope  with  which  you  are  flattering  yourselves,  that 
God  would  not  punish  him  for  those  sensual  grati- 
fications which  did  no  harm  to  others.  And  where 
did  this  hope  lead  him  1  "  In  hell  he  lift  up  his 
eyes,  being  in  torments."  "  Walk  then  in  the  sight 
of  your  eyes,  and  in  the  imagination  of  your  own 
hearts ;  but  know,  that  for  all  these  things  God 
will  bring  you  into  judgment." 

3.  There  is  an  important  lesson  which  all  who 
are  blessed  with  wealth  may  derive  from  the  parable 
before  us. 

Wealth,  like  every  other  advantage,  natural  or 
acquired,  which  we  possess,  is  a  talent  intrusted 
to  us  by  God,  whose  stewards  we  are  to  consider 
ourselves,  and  to  whom  we  are  to  render  an  ac- 
count. A  liberal  portion  of  the  wealth  with  which 
he  has  blessed  us,  we  must  give  back  to  him,  by 
devoting  it  to  the  purposes  of  benevolence  and 
piety :  the  residue  we  are  not  prohibited  from  de- 
voting, in  thankful  moderation,  to  the  purposes 
of  personal  and  social  gratification.  But  when, 
like  the  rich  man  in  the  parable,  we  devote  this 
wealth  to  those  voluptuous  indulgences  that  cor- 
rupt the  soul  and  estrange  it  from  God,  then  it  will 
prove  a  curse  to  its  possessor.  To  such  a  rich  man 
the  declaration  of  our  blessed  Lord  will  apply — 
"  It  is  easier  for  a  camel  to  go  through  the  eye  of 
a  needle,  than  for  a  rich  man  to  enter  into  the 
kingdom  of  God." 

4.  We  noiice,  as  strikingly  set  forth  in  this 
parable,  the  awful  destiny  of  the  wicked. 


486  THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS. 

No  sooner  do  they  close  their  eyes  upon  this 
world,  than,  like  the  rich  man  in  the  parable,  they 
are  in  "torments" — torments,  of  which  the  fearful 
agonies  of  remorse,  that  sometimes  here  tear  the 
bosom  of  the  sinner,  afford  but  a  faint  idea ;  and 
compared  to  which,  the  fires  that  consume  the  vic- 
tim at  the  stake  could  be  easily  borne.  Their 
souls,  when  death  rends  them  from  the  body,  are 
consigned  to  inconceivable  misery  in  the  place  of 
the  departed ;  and  at  the  day  of  judgment,  their 
bodies  united  to  their  souls,  they  make  their  bed 
in  hell — in  devouring  fire — in  everlasting  burnings; 
so  says  the  word  of  God.  To  all  eternity,  to  all 
eternity  they  cry,  cry  without  ceasing — "  Give  me 
a  drop  of  water  to  cool  my  tongue,  for  I  am  tor- 
mented in  this  flame."  To  all  eternity  they  cry  in 
vain.  Alarming  reflection !  My  brethren,  if  we 
live  in  neglect  of  God  and  of  his  service — if  we, 
devoted  only  to  the  world,  neglect  the  care  of  our 
souls — we  shall  finally  dwell  with  the  devouring 
fire — we  must  lie  down  with  everlasting  burnings ; 
so,  I  repeat  it,  says  the  word  of  God ;  and  would 
it  be  wise  to  make  the  experiment  whether  that 
word  be  true '?  And  the  event  which  is  to  consign 
us  to  this  awful  destiny — the  event  of  death — is 
uncertain  :  it  will  come  after  the  revolution  of  a 
few  years — it  may  come  to-morrow — it  may  come 
to-day. 

5.  We  remark  further,  as  exhibited  in  this  para- 
ble, how  glorious  are  the  rewards  of  the  righteous. 

Like  the  pious  Lazarus,  as  soon  as  their  spirit 
departs  from  the  body,  attending  angels  receive  it, 
and  conduct  it  to  the  place  of  the  departed,  to  that 
place  which  their  Redeemer  blessed  with  his  pre- 


THE  RIUH  MAN  ASStJ  LAZARUS.  487 

sdnce  in  the  interval  between  his  death  and  his 
resurrection.  They  rest  in  the  bosom  of  blessed- 
ness— in  the  society  of  the  Father  of  the  faithful — 
of  all  the  saints  who  have  departed  in  the  faith  of 
his  holy  nanie.  There  they  are  cheered  by  mani- 
festations of  the  divine  glory  and  perfections;  -and 
they  anticipate,  with  holy  rapture,  their  re-union 
with  their  glorified  bodies,  at  the  resurrection  of 
the  just.  They  look  forward  with  holy  and  joyful 
confidence  to  the  period  when  their  corruption 
shall  put  on  incorruption,  and  their  mortal  immor- 
tality— when  the  welcome  sentence  shall  be  ad- 
dressed to  them — "  Come,  ye  blessed  of  my  Father^ 
inlierit  the  kingdom  prepared  for  you  from  the 
foundation  of  the  world." 

Christian  brethren,  let  us  comfort  one  another 
with  these  words.  Cheered  by  the  glorious  pros- 
pect which  they  present,  let  us  follow  our  Christian 
friends  from  the  bed  of  disease  and  death  to  the 
bosom  of  Abraham,  to  the  custodies  of  that  Al- 
mighty Saviour  who  holds  the  keys  of  death  and 
hell ;  let  us  in  holy  imagination  follow  them — made 
like  to  the  angels  of  God,  invested  with  the  gar- 
ments of  immortality — to  the  kingdom  of  their 
Almighty  Father ;  and  let  us  not  sorrow,  because 
they  have  gone  before  us  to  the  place  of  rest  and 
peace,  as  those  that  have  no  hope. 

Lastly.  We  remark,  as  enforced  by  this  parable, 
on  the  guilt  of  those  who  reject  or  disregard  the 
offers  of  salvation  proclaimed  in  the  Gospel. 

How  great  would  be  the  obstinacy,  the  incredu- 
lity, and  the  guilt  of  those  who  would  reject  a 
messenger  coming  unto  them  from  the  dead,  and 
announcing  the   awful   realities   of  the   invisible 


488  THE  RICH  MAW  AND  LAZAKKS. 

vvorl(] !  Such  was  the  obstinacy,  the  incredulilyj 
and  the  guilt  of  the  Jews,  who  rejected  the  testi- 
mony of  that  divine  Personage  who  arose  from  the 
dead  to  assure  them  of  the  certainty  of  a  future 
state — that  God  would  judge  the  world  in  righte- 
ousness. Such  is  now  the  obstinacy,  the  incredu- 
lity, and  the  guilt  of  those  who  contemn  or  neglect 
the  offers  of  salvation  from  him  who  has  brought 
life  and  immortality  to  light.  Would  they  be  per- 
suaded if  one  were  to  rise  from  the  dead  1  The 
testimony  of  all  ages  to  those  divine  miracles  which 
Christ  wrought — the  numerous  prophecies  which 
were  fulfilled  in  his  person,  and  in  the  condition  of 
those  who  were  once  God's  chosen  people — the 
excellence  of  his  holy  religion,  the  sublime  nature 
of  its  doctrines,  the  sanctity  of  its  precepts,  the 
efficacy  of  its  aids,  the  value  of  its  consolationsj, 
the  splendour  of  its  rewards,  and  the  awful  severity 
of  its  punishments — the  warnings  of  God's  provi- 
dence—the secret  monitions  and  strivings  of  his 
Spirit— the  denunciations  of  his  justice,  the  invita- 
tions of  his  mercy — the  terrors  of  hell,  the  hopes 
of  heaven — if  all  these  do  not  convince  or  move 
them,  "  neither  would  they  be  persuaded  though 
one  rose  from  the  dead."  Alas !  how  shall  they 
escape,  who  neglect  so  great  salvation  1 — who,  im- 
mersed in  worldly  pursuits  and  sinful  pleasures^ 
neglect  that  one  thing  needful,  the  care  of  their 
immortal  souls.  Let  them  consider  the  fate  of  the 
rich  man  in  the  parable.  They  are  now  gay  and 
thoughtless ;  so  he  once  was.  They  are  forgetful 
of  God  and  eternity ;  such  was  once  the  forgetful- 
ness  of  the  rich  man.  "  In  hell  he  lifts  up  his  eyes, 
being  in  torments."  If  the  world  could  purchase 
that  day  of  grace  which  he  contemned,  do  we  not 


THE  RICH  MAN  AND  LAZARUS.  489 

think  that  the  world,  if  he  possessed  it,  would  be 
joyfally  given  1  My  brethren,  that  day  of  grace  we 
now  enjoy;  let  us  not  neglect  it,  lest,  like  this 
hapless  sinner,  we  lift  up  our  eyes,  being  in  tor- 
ments— lest,  like  him,  we  cry  for  mercy,  but  it  is 
too  late. 

Christian  brethren,  be  ye  steadfast,  unmoveable, 
always  abounding  in  the  work  of  the  Lord  :  for 
your  labour  shall  not  be  in  vain  in  the  Lord. 
Through  the  cares  and  trials  of  life,  that  God  to 
whom  you  have  devoted  yourselves,  and  whom  you 
endeavour  faithfully  to  serve,  will  support  you.  Be 
not  dismayed  at  the  dark  valley  of  the  shadow  of 
death ;  your  Saviour  shall  conduct  you  through  it. 
Death  he  will  strip  for  you  of  its  sting,  and  the 
grave  of  its  victory.  From  this  vale  of  tears  you 
shall  be  translated,  like  the  pious  Lazarus,  to  the 
paradise  of  God.  When  your  earthly  house  of  this 
tabernacle  is  dissolved,  you  shall  be  clothed  upon 
with  a  house  which  is  from  heaven — when  you 
have  passed  the  region  of  the  grave,  you  shall  come 
to  the  city  of  the  living  God,  where  flow  the  waters 
of  life,  of  comfort,  of  salvation. 


Vol.  in.  62 


SERMON   XL. 


THE  SOURCES  OF  HUMAN  TROUBLE,  AND  ITS  ANTIDOTE. 


John  xiv.  1. 


Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled :  ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also 

in  me. 

This  was  the  language  which  our  blessed  Lord 
addressed  to  his  disciples  but  a  short  time  before 
his  crucifixion.  It  was  natural  that  their  hearts 
should  be  troubled,  when  they  looked  forward  to 
their  beloved  Friend  and  Master  sufferinsr  an  igno- 
minious  death ;  when  they  considered  that  they 
thus  would  soon  be  deprived  of  his  affectionate 
counsel  and  support ;  and  when  they  surveyed  the 
trials  and  persecutions  which  awaited  them,  as  the 
disciples  of  one  whom  the  inveterate  malice  of  his 
enemies  would  crucify  and  slay.  Jesus,  their  di- 
vine Master,  was  touched  with  compassion  for 
them,  and  he  addressed  to  them  the  voice  of  con- 
solation— "  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled  :  ye 
believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me."  Ye  believe  in 
God,  who  is  infinitely  wise,  infinitely  powerful,  and 
infinitely  good ;  believe  also  in  me,  whom  he  hath 
sent  to  be  your  Guide,  Comforter,  and  Saviour — 
through  whom  you  can  have  access  unto  this  great- 
est and  best  of  Beings,  and  obtain  a  title  to  his 
blessing,  his  protection,  and  his  everlasting  favour. 
What  can  hurt  you  or  make  you  afraid  1    Believ- 


HUMAN  TROUBLE,  AND  ITS  ANTIDOTE.  491 

hig  in  God,  believing  in  me,  let  not  your  heart  be 
troubled. 

This,  brethren,  is  the  language  which  Jesus 
Christ  still  addresses  to  us,  his  disciples ;  and  the 
consolatory  truth  which  he  exhibits,  and  which  it 
is  my  design  now  to  inculcate,  is,  that  faith  in 
God,  through  Jesus  Christ,  is  an  effectual  remedy 
for  all  the  troubles  of  the  heart. 

From  the  troubles  of  the  heart  who  is  exempt  1 
Who  therefore  will  not  feel  interested  in  the  gra- 
cious declaration — "  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled : 
ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me." 

The  troubles  of  the  heart  arise — 

1.  From  the  sense  of  guilt; 

2.  From  the  power  of  sin  and  temptation  ; 

3.  From  the  calamities  of  the  world; 

4.  From  the  fear  of  death. 

For  all  these,  faith  in  God,  through  Jesus  Christ, 
is  an  all-powerful  remedy.     Tt  offers, 

1.  For  the  sense  of  guilt,  the  assurance  of  par- 
don ; 

2.  For  the  power  of  sin  and  temptation,  the  cer- 
tainty of  victory  by  the  aids  of  divine  grace; 

3.  For  the  calamities  of  the  world,  the  consola- 
tions of  the  divine  favour  ; 

4.  For  the  fear  of  death,  the  triumphant  hope  of 
immortality. 

J.  Faith  in  God,  through  Christ,  is  a  remedy  for 
the  sense  of  guilt,  by  the  assurance  of  pardon  which 
it  conveys  to  us. 

Where  is  the  individual,  brethren,  who  has  not, 
in  a  greater  or  less  degree,  disregarded  the  dic- 
tates of  reason,  resisted  the  monitions  of  con- 


492  THE  SOURGfiS  OP  HUMAN  TROUBtE, 

science,  and  violated  the  righteous  commands  of 
God,  his  Maker,  his  Sovereign,  and  his  Judged 
There  is  no  man  who  liveth  and  sinneth  not ;  and 
there  is  no  man  who  views  the  evil  of  sin  in  the 
colours  in  which  reason  and  the  word  of  God  pre- 
sent it,  and  who  faithfully  examines  his  own  life, 
marked  by  actual  transgressions  as  well  as  omis- 
sions of  duty,  who  will  not  feel  cause  to  exclaim 
with  the  penitent  psalmist — "  There  is  no  health 
in  my  flesh,  because  of  thy  displeasure,  O  Lord ; 
neither  is  there  any  rest  in  my  bones,  by  reason  of 
my  sin :  for  my  wickednesses  are  gone  over  my 
head,  and  arc  like  a  sore  burden,  loo  heavy  for  me 
to  bear." 

For  thts  sore  trouble  of  the  heart  who  can  find 
a  remedy]  Can  reason  or  nature  proclaim  the 
terms  on  which  the  just  Governor  of  the  univei'se 
will  remit  the  punishment  incurred  by  man  who 
has  offended  him,  and  convey  that  assurance  of 
pardon  which  only  can  dispense  peace  to  the 
wounded  spirit  1  Man,  oppressed  and  agitated 
with  a  sense  of  guilt,  turns  for  consolation  to  rea- 
son and  nature.  He  hears  not  the  voice  of  pardon ; 
for  this  can  come  only  from  the  God  of  reason  and 
nature,  the  Almighty  Sovereign,  against  whom  man 
has  transgressed,  and  who  only,  therefore,  can  de- 
clare the  terms  on  which  the  penalties  of  trans- 
gression shall  be  remitted.  The  God  of  reason 
and  nature,  the  Almighty  Sovereign  whom  man  has 
offended,  is  as  merciful  and  good  as  he  is  just  and 
holy :  he  has  sent  his  Son  Jesus  Christ  to  satisfy 
the  justice  and  repair  the  violated  authority  of  his 
government,  and  thus  to  be  vested  with  power  to 
proclaim  the  terms  of  forgiveness.  The  Son  of 
God  was  constituted,  in  our  nature,  the  Lamb  with- 


aNd  its  antidote  »  493- 

tJUt  blemish  and  without  spot,  slain  for  the  sins  of 
the  world ;  and  he  was  wounded  for  our  transgres- 
sions, he  was  bruised  for  our  iniquities ;  he  was 
made  sin  for  us,  who  knew  no  sin,  that  we  might 
be  made  the  righteousness  of  God  in  him ;  he  was 
delivered  for  our  offences,  and  raised  for  our  justi- 
fication. That  mystery  is  resolved  which  baffled 
the  eiforts  of  reason,  "  how  God  could  be  just,  and 
yet  justify  the  sinner :"  for  "  if  any  man  sin,  he 
has  an  Advocate  with  the  Father,  even  Jesus  Christ 
the  righteous ;  and  he  is  a  propitiation  for  our  sins, 
and  not  for  ours  only,  but  also  for  the  sins  of  the 
whole  world." 

Thus  does  faith  in  God's  mercy,  through  Jesus 
Christ,  convey  the  assurance  of  pardon. 

Let  not  then  your  hearts  be  troubled ;  God  is  in 
Jesus  Christ  reconciling  the  world  unto  himself. 
Conscience  may  accuse  you  of  numerous  violations 
of  the  laws  of  God  ;  in  the  indulgence  of  your  sin- 
ful passions  you  may  have  resisted  his  authority, 
contemned  his  power  and  his  justice,  despised  his 
gracious  warnings,  and  rejected  his  merciful  invi- 
tations ;  the  remembrance  of  your  sins  may  be 
grievous  unto  you,  and  the  burden  of  them  intoler- 
able ;  yet  let  not  your  heart  be  troubled  ;  God  has 
proclaimed,  through  his  Son  Jesus  Christ,  the  terms 
of  forgiveness — has  provided  for  the  remission  of 
your  guilt.  Repent,  and  be  heartily  sorry  for  these 
your  misdoings.  Resolve  to  serve  God  in  newness 
of  life;  and  have  a  lively  faith  in  his  mercy,  through 
Christ,  the  all-sufficient  and  compassionate  Saviour 
who  has  graciously  promised  to  receive  all  those 
who  come  unto  God  through  him.  Believe  stead- 
fastly, unhesitatingly  believe  that  God,  for  his  sake, 
will  be  merciful  unto  your  unrighteousness,  and 


'494  THE  SOURCES  OF  HUMAN  TROUBLE, 

will  remember  your  sins  and  iniquities  no  more. 
"  Be  of  good  comfort" — it  is  your  Saviour  who 
speaks  to  you — "  Be  of  good  comfort,  your  sins 
are  forgiven."  ^'  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled  : 
ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me." 

2.  But  even  when  the  heart  is  refreshed  by  the 
assurance  of  the  pardon  of  its  past  sins,  its  troubles 
are  renewed  in  the  sense  of  its  liability  to  tempta- 
tion. 

For  this  source  of  trouble, /«i^/«  in  God,  through 
Jesus  Christy  presents  the  hope  of  victory  by  the 
aids  of  divine  grace. 

Though  an  all-suflicient  atonement  for  sin  is 
provided,  and  though  pardon  is  thus  oftered  to  all 
who  truly  repent  and  believe,  who  come  unto  God 
through  Christ,  steadfastly  purposing  to  serve  and 
please  him  in  newness  of  life ;  yet  how  is  this 
possible  I  "  Can  the  Ethiopian  change  his  skin, 
and  the  leopard  his  spots?  Then  may  they  do 
ffood  who  have  been  accustomed  to  do  evil.'' 
Alas !  so  weak  and  corrupt  is  man's  nature,  that 
when  he  would  do  good,  evil  is  present  with  him. 
He  may  delight  in  the  law  of  God,  after  the  inward 
man,  agreeably  to  the  dictates  of  reason  and  of 
conscience  ;  but  he  finds  another  law  in  his  mem- 
bers warring  against  the  law  of  his  mind,  and 
bringing  him  into  captivity  to  the  law  of  sin.  This 
is  the  natural  condition  of  man.  It  is  worse  than 
folly  to  attempt  to  reconcile  this  constitution  of 
our  nature  with  the  justice  and  benevolence  of  our 
Almighty  Maker.  So  it  is.  Unjust  and  cruel  in- 
deed would  this  condition  of  man  be,  were  there 
no  remedy  provided.  '  For  to  what  purpose,'  he 
may  exclaim,  *  is  pardon  oflered  on  conditions 


AND  ITS  ANTIDOTE.  495 

which  I  am  unable  to  perform?  Forgiveness  is 
promised  only  to  those  who  forsake  their  sins.  I 
have  not  the  strength  and  resolution  to  forsake 
them ;  sinful  propensities  and  passions  hold  the 
dominion  over  me,  and  overpower  the  dictates  of 
my  reason,  and  prostrate  my  virtuous  resolutions. 
In  vain  do  I  desire  and  endeavour  to  do  the  com- 
mandments of  God  :  the  temptations  of  the  world, 
so  alluring  and  powerful,  find  advocates  in  my  pas- 
sions, and  lead  me  to  violate  my  vows  of  obedience, 
and  to  depart  from  God's  holy  ways ;  I  do  the 
things  which  I  ought  not  to  do,  and  leave  undone 
the  things  which  I  ought  to  do ;  I  indulge  in  prac- 
tices which  my  sober  reason  disapproves,  and 
neglect  to  discharge  those  high  duties  which  I 
know  are  the  law  and  the  perfection  of  my  nature. 
Thus  continuing  a  transgressor,  thus  fast  bound  by 
the  chain  of  my  sins,  how  can  I  expect  that  I  can 
be  acceptable  to  a  God  who,  though  he  declares 
mercy  to  the  penitent  who  forsakes  his  sins,  is  yet 
of  purer  eyes  than  to  behold  iniquity?  How  can  I 
indulge  the  hope  of  pardon,  when  I  do  not  exercise 
those  holy  affections,  nor  discharge  those  duties, 
which  are  the  indispensable  qualifications  for  en- 
joying the  favour  of  a  righteous,  and  just,  and  holy 
God  l  Wretched  man  that  1  am !  who  shall  deliver 
me  from  the  body  of  this  death  V 

This  is  the  condition  in  which  nature  finds  man, 
subject,  from  the  objects  which  surround  him,  and 
from  the  sinful  passions  of  his  heart,  to  temptations 
which  lead  him  to  violate  the  dictates  of  reason, 
and  conscience,  and  the  divine  law — to  resist  and 
to  overcome  them,  he  finds  his  own  powers  impo- 
tent, his  own  exertions  ineffectual.  In  this  deplor- 
able condition  nature  finds  man,  and  in  this  condi- 


496  THE  SOURCES  OF  HUMAN  TROUBLE, 

tion  she  leaves  him.  She  holds  forth  no  eftectuai 
aid  by  which  man  may  escape  from  the  power  of 
temptation ;  she  knows  no  deliverer  who  can  rescue 
man  from  this  spiritual  thraldom,  and  assure  him 
victory  over  his  foes. 

But  there  is  a  voice,  to  which  reason  and  nati  re 
are  strangers,  which  addresses  to  those  who,  sen- 
sible of  the  weakness  and  corruption  of  their  na- 
ture, are  overwhelmed  with  despondency  at  their 
vain  efforts  for  deliverance — "  Let  not  your  heart 
be  troubled  :  ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also  in 
me  :" — it  is  the  voice  of  Jesus  Christ,  whom  God 
hath  exalted  to  be  a  Prince  and  a  Saviour,  to  give 
repentance  to  Israel  and  remission  of  sins ;  and 
imperfectly  would  he  perform  his  divine  office,  if 
he  did  not,  by  saving  us  from  the  dominion  of  our 
sins,  qualify  us  to  receive  the  remission  of  them. 

Here,  then,  is  the  efiectual  remedy  which  faith 
in  God,  through  Christ,  applies  for  the  troubles  of 
the  heart  which  laments  its  subjection  to  sin  and 
to  temptation.  That  incomprehensible  but  power- 
ful grace  of  the  Holy  Spirit,  whereby  man  is  pre- 
pared for  calling  upon  God,  is  redeemed  from  sin, 
sanctified  in  soul  and  body,  and  led  in  the  ways  of 
God's  laws,  and  in  the  works  of  his  commandments, 
is  the  gitl  of  God,  through  Christ.  Secretly  but 
powerfully  does  God's  preventing  grace,  going  be- 
fore men  in  all  holy  works,  excite  them  to  repent- 
ance, and  to  faith,  and  to  holy  obedience;  and 
they  who,  not  resisting  his  gracious  influences., 
lament  and  confess  their  sins,  imploring  God's 
mercy  and  grace  through  Jesus  Christ,  and  waiting 
upon  him  in  the  ordinances  of  his  church,  to  which 
this  Spirit  is  especially  and  fully  given,  shall  bo 
renewed  in  the  spirit  of  their  mjnds,  shall  be  en- 


ANt)  ITS  ANTIDOTE.  497 

dued  with  divine  power  to  resist  and  overcome  the 
most  formidable  temptations,  and  to  serve  their 
God  in  newness  of  life. 

Yes,  the  penitent  believer  is  assured  that  he  can 
do  all  things  necessary  for  his  salvation  through 
that  grace  of  Christ  which  strengtheneth  him.    By 
this  grace  he  obtains  that  new  heart,  and  renders 
that  holy  obedience,  which,  though  they  may  be 
alloyed  with  imperfections,  will  yet  be  acceptable 
unto  God,  through  the  righteousness  of  his  Son 
Jesus  Christ.  The  heart  of  the  believer,  then,  need 
not  be  troubled.     He  knows  in  whom  he  has  be- 
lieved :   he  knows  that  God  is  faithful ;  and  that 
God  hath  promised  not  to  tempt  him  above  what 
he  is  able  to  bear,  but  will  with  the  temptation 
make  a  way  to   escape  ;   and   that  he  will  never 
leave  nor  forsake   those  who   trust  in   him.     He 
knows  that  his  Saviour  ia  almighty  ;  and  his  Sa- 
viour hath  promised,  "  My  grace  shall  be  sufficient 
for  you ;  my  strength  shall  be  made  perfect  in  your 
weakness."   Furnished  with  supernatural  strenn-th, 
armed  with  the  grace  of  his  God  and  Saviour,  he 
subdues  his  sinful  passions,  he  perseveres  in  the 
paths  of  holiness — he  overcomes  the  temptations 
of  the  world,  the  flesh,  and  the  devil — he  bears 
down  his  enemies  under  his  feet. 

Thus,  then,  is  faith  in  God,  through  Christ,  all- 
powerful  in  removing  the  sense  of  guilt,  and  in 
resisting  the  assaults  of  temptation. 

3.  It  is  equally  efficacious  against  the  sorrows  of 
the  world. 

Guilt  may  be  pardoned  and  sin  may  be  subdued, 
and  yet  the  heart  may  be  troubled.  The  Chnsiian, 
whose  soul  is  softened  by  divine  mercy  and  sub- 

Vol.  Ill,  63 


498  XhtE  SOURCES  OF  HUMAN  TROUBLE^ 

dued  by  divine  grace,  becomes  more  tender  and 
susceptible,  more  alive  to  the  sorrows  of  the  world. 
He  feels  most  acutely  the  stroke  of  adversity  which 
inflicts  pain,  sickness,  or  poverty,  or  consigns  to 
the  tomb  those  whom  nature  or  friendship  hatk 
endeared  to  him.  For  these  troubles  of  the  heart, 
reason  supplies  no  effectual  remedy.  She  enforces 
submission  to  evils,  because  we  cannot  avoid  them 
— acquiescence  in  calamities,  because  they  will  not 
last  for  ever.  These  are  cold  consolations.  But 
faith  in  God's  mercy,  through  Christ,  supplies  con- 
solations which  are  active  and  lively.  Faith  teaches 
us,  that  the  evils  which  we  cannot  indeed  avoid, 
are,  in  the  hands  of  onr  gracious  and  merciful 
Father,  the  instruments  of  our  spiritual  good. 
Faith  not  only  teaches  us  that  the  evils  with  which 
we  are  assailed  will  soon  terminate,  but  renders 
us  resigned  to  their  continuance,  by  the  assurance 
that  they  are  the  evidences  of  God's  love  for  us, 
the  merciful  discipline  by  which  he  subdues  our 
vices,  exalts  our  virtues,  weans  us  from  the  world, 
and  prepares  us  for  more  exalted  glory  in  heaven. 
Faith  teaches  us  that,  by  these  afflictions,  we  are 
conformed  (and  what  a  privilege  is  this !)  to  the 
likeness  of  our  divine  Master,  who  was  despised 
and  afflicted ;  and  that  while  his  grace  is  ready  to 
support  us  under  them,  they  are  the  pledges  of 
our  finally  sharing  with  him  the  glory  with  which, 
after  his  patient  endurance  of  sutlering,  he  is  in- 
vested at  the  right  hand  of  the  Father.  These  are 
•remedies  for  affliction  which  reason  and  nature 
cannot  supply;  which  enable  Christians,  under  ca- 
lamities which  would  overwhelm  with  disconsolate 
grief  those  whose  only  comforter  is  nature,  to  ex- 
hibit the  serenity,  the  tenderness,  the  meekness  of 


AND  ITS  ANTIDOTE.  499 

holy  resignation,  and  to  exclaim,  in  the  fervour  of 
ti-iumphant  faith — ''  As  dying,  and  behold  we  live ; 
as  sorrowful,  yet  always  rejoicing ;  as  having  no- 
thing, and  yet  possessing  all  things."  They  are 
remedies  supplied  only  by  that  Saviour  who,  infi- 
nite in  meroy  and  power,  addresses  to  his  followers 
the  divine  words  of  consolation — "  Let  not  your 
hearts  be  troubled :  ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also 


4.  In  this  divine  declaration,  also,  we  behold  oue 
only  remedy  for  that  trouble  of  the  heart  more 
severe  than  all  others — the  fear  of  death. 

The  fear  of  leaving  the  world,  so  long  the  scene 
of  our  plans,  exertions,  and  pleasures — the  fear  oF 
encountering  the  agonies  which  convulse  the  body 
when  the  ties  which  bind  it  to  the  soul  are  rent 
asunder — the  fear  that  the  vigour  of  intellect,  the 
fire  of  imagination,  the  glow  of  friendship,  the 
fervour  of  affection,  will  be  extinguished  in  the 
gloom  of  the  grave — these  are  the  fears  which 
clothe  death  with  such  terrors — they  are  fears 
which  nature  inspires,  which  reason  cannot  allay ; 
she  possesses  no  light  with  which  to  explore  that 
dark  futurity — no  consolations  with  which  to  cheer 
the  spirit,  trembling  on  the  confines  of  an  unknowij 
world. 

But  to  this  trembling  spirit  a  voice  is  addressed 
— "  Be  not  troubled :  ye  believe  in  God,  believe 
also  in  me."  It  is  the  voice  of  him  who  hath 
brought  life  and  immortality  to  light,  and  who 
holds  the  keys  of  death  and  the  grave ;  who  died 
and  was  buried,  and  rose  again,  and  now  liveth  for 
ever ;  who  ascended  up  on  high,  leadin,g  captivity 
captive;  ajid;  ideated  in  glory  at  th^  right  hand  of 


500     THE  SOURCES  OF  HUMAN  TROUBLE, 

God,  hath  promised  to  his  followers,  that  where 
he  is,  there  they  shall  be  also.  Believing  in  him, 
the  heart  of  the  Christian  is  no  longer  troubled  : 
his  Guide  through  the  valley  of  the  shadow  of  death 
is  that  heavenly  Shepherd  whose  rod  and  whose 
staff  support  him :  his  Comforter  in  his  last  hour 
is  that  Saviour  who  himself  tasted  the  bitterness  of 
death.  Supported  and  invigorated  by  faith  in  this 
Almighty  Redeemer,  the  Christian  passes  through 
the  grave  and  gate  of  death  to  a  joyful  resurrec- 
tion. The  hour  so  terrible  to  nature,  so  tremen- 
dous to  the  sinner,  is  the  hour  of  the  Christian's 
triumph  ;  for  it  is  the  hour  when  his  trials  termi- 
nate, when  his  warfare  is  closed,  when  he  enters 
on  a  state  of  unspeakable  and  immortal  glory.  "  O 
death,  where  is  thy  sting  I  O  grave,  where  is  thy 
victory  V 

Brethren,  how  exalted  is  that  faith  which  thus 
proves  a  sovereign  remedy  for  the  troubles  of  the 
heart — the  sense  of  guilt,  the  power  of  temptation, 
the  sorrows  of  the  world,  the  fear  of  death. 

What  a  foe,  then,  to  human  happiness  is  that 
infidelity  which  would  deprive  man  of  this  exalted 
faith — which  would  leave  him  with  no  other  com- 
forterS  under  the  troubles  of  the  heart  than  nature 
and  reason — nature  and  reason,  which  reveal  no 
pardon  for  guilt,  no  power  to  overcome  temptation, 
no  effectual  consolation  under  the  sorrows  of  life, 
no  refuge  from  the  fears  of  death. 

But  what  is  this  faith,  thus  exalted  in  its  effects  I 
Is  it  a  cold  and  unproductive  belief  in  God's  mercy 
through  a  Saviour  I  No ;  it  is  a  faith  which  works 
by  love,  which  purifies  the  heart,  which  leads  to 
holy  obedience.  It  is  a  faith  which,  under  a  sense 
of  guilt,  trusts  for  pardon  only  to  the  mercy  of  God 


AND  ITS  ANTIDOTE.  501 

through  the  Saviour's  merits ;  which,  under  the 
assaults  of  temptation,  applies  to  the  grace  of  God 
for  strength  to  resist  it ;  which,  under  the  sorrows 
of  the  world,  seeks  for  the  only  effectual  consola- 
tion in  the  favour  of  God  ;  and  which,  under  the 
fear  of  death,  sees  no  other  deliverer  but  Jesus 
Christ,  who  is  the  resurrection  and  the  life.  It  is 
a  faith  so  strong,  so  lively,  so  uniform  in  its  opera- 
tion, that  the  Christian  lives  by  it,  makes  it  the 
principle  of  his  obedience,  the  source  of  his  con- 
solations, and  the  ground  of  his  triumphs.  This 
is  the  faith  meant  by  our  Saviour  in  his  exhortation 
to  his  disciples — "  Let  not  your  heart  be  troubled  ; 
ye  believe  in  God,  believe  also  in  me." 

Let  those  who  are  conscious  that  they  do  not 
possess  this  faith,  be  diligent  in  acquiring  it.  Let 
them,  under  a  sense  of  their  guilt  and  unworthi- 
ness,  in  lively  penitence  implore  pardon  through 
the  merits  of  ihat  blood  which  taketh  away  the 
sins  of  the  world.  Resolving  to  forsake  their  sins, 
let  them  fervently  invoke  the  grace  of  God  in 
Christ  to  create  a  clean  heart  and  renew  a  right 
spirit  within  them,  and  to  enable  them  to  resist 
temptation,  and  to  establish  them  in  the  ways  of 
holiness.  They  will  find  the  sense  of  guilt  re- 
moved, and  the  dominion  of  sin  subdued :  their 
hearts  will  not  be  troubled  :  their  God  and  Saviour 
will  be  with  them  in  all  their  sorrows  to  comfort 
them,  and  in  the  hour  of  death  to  give  them 
victory. 

But,  destitute  of  this  faith,  guilt  will  disturb  their 
conscience,  sin  will  corrupt  their  souls,  the  sorrows 
of  the  world  will  depress  them,  death  will  pursue 
them  with  his  terrors.  IIow  happy  would  it  be  for 
them,  if,  beyond  death,   there  were  no  terrors ! 


502  HUMAN  TROUBLE,  AND  ITS  ANTIDOTE. 

But  the  terrors  of  death  are  the  prelude  to  that 
everlasting  wo  which  is  denounced  (and  who 
would  make  the  experiment  whether  the  denunci- 
tion  will  be  executed  I)  as  the  portion  of  trans- 
gressors, of  those  who  despise  the  riciies  of  God's 
mercy  in  Jesus  Christ. 

Oh,  then,  my  Christian  brethren,  cultivate,  by 
reading  the  word  of  God,  by  meditation,  by  prayer, 
by  attention  on  all  holy  ordinances,  your  faith  in 
God's  mercy  through  Christ.  In  proportion  to  the 
strength  of  this  faith  will  be  the  peace  of  your 
conscience,  the  power  of  holiness  in  your  souls, 
your  superiority  to  the  changes  and  sorrows  of  the 
world,  your  composure  and  hope  in  death,  and 
your  felicity  through  endless  ages.  Believe  in  God, 
through  Jesus  Christ,  and  let  not  your  heart  be 
troubled. 


THE  ENO. 


^ffiii?iiiiim?,?.'f?,?i,Sf'  Seminary   Librarie 


"'«J9"'2   01195   3629 


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